Sports injuries are common across the nation, as millions of students suffer from injuries while participating in school activities and organized sports every year. While it’s natural for children and teenagers to break or fracture a bone from time to time, it shouldn’t happen because their PE teacher or coach was negligent. Supervisors still have a responsibility to protect their students and prioritize their safety and health. If you suspect your child’s school or teacher was negligent and caused your child’s accident, our sports injury lawyers can investigate.
A coach or teacher can be held responsible for the following methods or techniques, among others:
- Encouraging cheating or “playing dirty” in a game
- Failing to call for emergency assistance in the event of a medical emergency
- Pushing players beyond reasonable limits
- Physically assaulting a player
- Failing to accommodate players’ injuries, making them worse
- Improperly supervising players during practices
Additionally, a school or school district may be held liable for injuries if they were caused as a result of unsafe property conditions. In this case, you’d be able to seek damages under premises liability laws. Schools can also be held responsible for injuries if they are proven to have known about any broken or defective equipment but did nothing to fix it before the accident.
Overall, individuals who can be responsible for a sports-related injury include:
- Coaches
- Staff instructors
- Schools
- Other students
- Equipment manufacturers
What is Ordinary Negligence?
It can be difficult to determine if your child’s injuries were caused by gross negligence or ordinary negligence. Ordinary negligence includes injuries that happen because of the inherent risk of the sport – they’re not a specific person or entity’s fault. In cases of ordinary negligence, schools and coaches are immune.
Common inherent risks in sports include:
- Football: Injuries resulting from tackles, running, and throwing or catching the football
- Basketball: Injuries to the face from the basketball or an accidental elbow
- Lacrosse: Injuries resulting from lacrosse stick or ball hits
What Do I Have to Prove?
To recover damages for your child’s injuries, which can include medical expenses like hospital stays, prescription medicine, surgeries, ambulance rides, and more, you must prove that the school or its employees are responsible for the injuries. You must also show that liability hasn’t been waived or is subject to immunity, as many school sports require parents to sign a consent form.
If you haven’t signed a waiver, you may be eligible to file a lawsuit. Our lawyers offer free consultations so we can hear your story and give our professional opinions on your potential case.
You Want to Protect Your Family – So Do We
If you or your child has suffered a sports injury due to negligence, you deserve to seek justice. You shouldn’t have to worry about whether your child’s coach is keeping their safety a priority when they’re at practice or a game. At Bertram & Graf, L.L.C., our sports injury lawyers take each of our cases seriously by offering personalized solutions for each client’s specific needs. We offer empathetic service and treat each client like they’re our only client because for you, this case could change your life and the lives of others.
Don’t wait until it’s too late to properly heal from your injuries. Contact Bertram & Graf, L.L.C. online or by phone today at (888) 398-2277 for a free, no-obligation consultation from one of our team members. We believe your voice deserves to be heard.