Kids are like Nerf™ balls; they’re resilient and bounce back. Normally they can take a ton of wear and tear on a playground, running around and hollering at the top of their lungs. Bruises and scrapes come with the territory. When asked where a particular boo-boo came from, it’s usually greeted by a shrug.
Sometimes, however, they can really get injured. If it happens at home, the parent would gather the crying child up and whisk him or her away to the hospital, relying on the family insurance plan to get them all through this trying time.
What happens if that child is injured somewhere else? Like at school? You’ll have many questions running through your head – ("Can I sue a public school?" "Do I use my own insurance?" "Do different schools handle this differently?" "What if my child was hurt by another child at school?")
It can be difficult to determine who is responsible, because when the child is in the thicket of other kids, how do you know who started a fight when everyone is pointing fingers? It could’ve even been the child’s own negligence, for all you know.
Things can get darker, too. What if an adult were responsible? What happens then?
We’re here to sort things out.
Schools are supposed to provide safe environments for children during the time they are away from their families. They operate almost as parents during the school day. In fact, there is a term for this: in loco parentis, or "in place of the parent." As such, they have to provide for kids’ needs in much the same way that parents do: food, shelter, transportation, medication and safety.
Failing in any of those areas is a recipe for negligence. (As a quick reminder, negligence is when the plaintiff, also known as the victim, was owed a duty of care by the defendant. The defendant violated that duty of care, and that violation caused the plaintiff damages.)
But the question is, who pays for treatment? That is where it gets tricky. It all depends on what type of school your kid goes to, where your kid was hurt, what time of day your kid was hurt, and what degree of involvement your kid had in the accident.
Schools have a few defenses, the most important of which is sovereign immunity.
They are treated as political subdivisions if they are public schools, so the first question to ask is whether the school is public or private.
If the school is private, you can sue the school directly. If the school is public, reporting the accident to the district comes first. You must first file a claim with the school district before filing a lawsuit – and you generally only have 60 to 90 days, because it is treated as a government case.
Always check the statute of limitations in your state so that your case is not thrown out.
Additionally, waivers are another defense.
When playing sports, students usually sign waivers beforehand that acknowledge the risks of playing the sport. These aren’t corporate legal documents, but they will get the job done if necessary. Make sure to check with an attorney to see how strong the document is and whether there are any holes you can poke through.
One more defense is school hours. If students are on the playground and get hurt, but it’s a Saturday or not during school hours, the school will not be held liable.
Anyone within a school can be held liable for personal injuries to a child. It’s how the scenario arises that sets it apart.
If your child has been hurt at school, it is important to act quickly. Consider speaking with an Enjuris attorney before the statute of limitations has expired.
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