We trust our children’s schools here in Mississippi to provide them with an education and keep them safe. What happens when a child is injured while at school, either by another child, a teacher, a third party, or the school premises? The answer is that it depends on the facts of the case, but that the basic tenets of negligence apply. In the following blog post, I will describe how school liability works and how schools are different than other businesses.
If your child was injured as a result of his or her school’s negligence, one thing is critical to know—you will need to have experienced counsel help you attain your fair share of compensation for his or her injury and recovery. Barrett Law has the experience to help you if you or a loved one has been injured. Contact us now at (800) 707-9577.
Negligence in the School Setting
Regardless of the setting, schools are generally charged with keeping children safe. This is true in all school programs, including field trips and off-campus events sponsored by the school. That said, schools are not charged with keeping all children accident-free at all times—that is an impossible standard to meet. Instead, schools must exhibit a reasonable standard of care to keep children safe. That is a broad standard, which results in most cases being fact specific.
Imagine a teacher takes a 12-student class on a study abroad trip to Venezuela. Once there, she ignores U.S. State Department warnings and travels to a dangerous part of the country where the children are subsequently robbed, held against their will for a short period of time, and seriously scared before being released. Upon returning home, the children continue to experience anxiety and distractedness due to their harrowing experience. What, if anything, are they due? In this scenario, I would argue that the teacher had a duty to keep the children reasonably safe. Getting robbed and held against your will could happen in any country, so that unfortunate occurrence does not itself trigger negligence. However, in this scenario the critical fact is that she ignored a U.S. State Department warning—the particular danger that the students encountered was reasonably avoidable. That is the negligence standard for schools, was the harm experienced by a student reasonably avoidable by meeting a recognized standard? I could have written similar examples with a homeless person wandering in through an unlocked door and assaulting a child or a teacher with several DUI’s getting in an accident while driving a team bus. Each of these incidents was avoidable by meeting a reasonable safety standard.
The above examples would apply to either a private or public school. Sovereign immunity—the ability of the state to avoid liability—will complicate a suit against a public school, but this is a surmountable problem. The first step to attaining compensation for your child’s injuries is to contact an experienced personal injury attorney.
What Should You Do If Your Child Has Been Injured at School?
If your child was injured at school or during a school program, you should be compensated for medical costs, counselling, and other expenses. Let experienced counsel take care of preserving medical records, attaining expert diagnoses, and dealing with the school’s attorneys. These are essential tasks that a personal injury attorney can handle for you and that you cannot handle alone.
Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi personal injury law firm, to represent you if you have suffered an injury. Contact us now at (800) 707-9577.
