The status of a visitor as a licensee (as opposed to a trespasser or an invitee) defines the legal rights of the visitor if they are injured due to the negligence of the property possessor (not necessarily the owner).
The licensee falls between the anticipated or discovered trespasser and the invitee on the sliding scale of tort liability assessed to landowners.
Whereas the anticipated trespasser needs to be protected from known man made conditions capable of causing death or serious injury, the licensee must be warned of all known dangers.
[1] Under traditional common law, a property possessor (not necessarily the owner) has no duty whatsoever to trespassers.
Historically, emergency workers – police and firefighters – have been considered licensees, but they are barred from recovering from injuries caused by the risks inherent to their jobs.