When a child is injured at school, who is liable?

Liability for when a child is injured at school will depend on the circumstances. The first thing that needs to be determined is the cause of the injuries. Go over this information with your Colorado injury attorney to establish whether the school acted in a negligent manner.

What is a school’s responsibility to the students?

It is the responsibility of the staff to ensure all students are safe. Of course, this can only go so far. If a child acts in a careless or reckless manner, it would be hard to place the blame on the school.

When there is a failure to prevent what is a foreseeable risk to students, or there is knowledge of a risk and nothing is done to correct it, the school may be responsible for any resulting child injuries at school. You would need to prove that the school had breached its duty of care to the child.

It’s important to keep in mind that school districts are considered public entities. Therefore, government immunity may apply in cases involving public schools. In Colorado, school districts may be held liable if it can be shown a dangerous condition existed that was known or should have been known to exist and nothing was done to correct it.

There may even be the possibility of filing a lawsuit against an individual who works for the school district.

Are schools responsible for playground injuries?

One of the more common ways that children are injured at school is on the playground. However, most of these cases are a result of normal play and schools aren’t usually liable.

Liability could be found with the school, however, if it is discovered there was a lack of supervision. Or if the equipment was found to be poorly maintained and dangerous to students, the school might be responsible.

However, let’s say it’s discovered the equipment was defective. In that case you might be able to file a claim against the manufacturer of the equipment.

What are some examples of school negligence?

If a school was aware of bullying and did nothing to stop it, it could be found negligent if the situation escalated to the point a child was injured at school.

Another example would be failing to have in place evacuation plans in the event of an emergency. The school may also be liable if sanitation standards are lacking in the cafeteria and it results in children becoming seriously ill.

Even injuries around school buses could potentially be the school’s fault if it failed to enforce safety measures with regard to nearby traffic. For instance, no one is there to assist with students getting dropped off at school and a child runs into the street, getting struck by a car.

If the conditions within the school are unsafe, such as stairs in disrepair and a child is injured, the school may be responsible. Each situation would need to be carefully evaluated.

When there is uncertainty about liability, Colorado injury attorney D.J. Banovitz might be able to help. A lawyer can review the details of your case and help with a claim if your child is injured at school (303) 300-5060.