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Proving Negligent Supervision Against an Educational Institution

Every day you send your child to school, you have a reasonable expectation that he or she will have proper supervision and be reasonably safe in the educational institution. No one should worry about whether or not their child will be harmed while at school, yet daily thousands of children across the nation are put in harm’s way because of negligent supervision.

Reasonable Expectations

Millions of kids are injured every day. These injuries are on a continuum from minor cuts and bruises to life-altering catastrophes. The majority of injuries kids will receive while attending an educational institution are accidental and minor. Playground and athletic injuries are common even with direct, responsible supervision.

Studies relating to school-based injuries show that kids of school age are nine times more likely to be injured unintentionally than they are intentional. While the media focus is on deliberate and sensational harm done to kids at school that is not the cause of most injuries.

Parents should not be surprised when their child gets injured on the playground while in elementary school. In secondary school, most injuries are sustained during physical education classes and organized sports. Even though minor childhood injuries are likely to happen, when your child is hurt due to negligent supervision, it must be addressed.

Proving Negligent Supervision

Teachers, coaches, and school administrators are expected to anticipate particular potential and foreseeable situations that could be dangerous. They are to take reasonable precautions to ensure that children are protected from those dangers. This duty to protect your child may extend beyond the premises of the educational institution. Field trips, away games, and school bus trips are examples.

If reasonable care is not extended to your child, the attending employee could be liable for negligent supervision. When a case is brought to court, reasonable actions are compared to what actually happened to determine if negligence came into play.

Several factors are considered:

  • Was the supervising employee in attendance?
  • Where did the injury occur?
  • What level of training or experience did the employee have?
  • What type of activity was the child involved in at the time of the accident?
  • Did he or she have training or any warning about the dangers?

The age of the child and his or her capacity is also taken into consideration. If the injury is one that could not have been prevented, the level of supervision notwithstanding, the educational institution may not be held liable.

Proximate cause may exist if the injury was one that could have been anticipated and prevented under reasonable supervision. Such cases can be challenging to establish, which is why it is advisable to work with attorneys who have some experience in this area.

Contact the Maison Law Firm for excellent representation in personal injury cases. Serving Visalia, Merced, Bakersfield, and Fresno areas, we work tirelessly on our client’s behalf. You owe nothing unless we win. Email us at martin@maisonlaw.comor call 559-203-3333.

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