The last thing any parent wants is to receive a phone call telling them that their child was hurt at school. Between missing work and medical bills, this injury can quickly become expensive. The question most parents have is simple – do you have a right to sue?
Understanding School Liability
In order to protect your child while he or she is at school, teachers and school administrators have an obligation placed on them by the courts of the state they live in to do everything reasonably possible to prevent your child from being hurt, injured, or killed.
This duty requires the school to provide your child with a safe environment to learn. This means repairs to floors, walls, desks, and anything else that threatens to hurt your child, need to be handled in a timely manner. This duty also requires the school to make sure your child is supervised the entire time they are at school, participating in school activities, or on the school bus.
If a teacher, administrator, or other member of the school staff fails to protect your child, the law defines this as being negligent. Legally, if your child was injured at school because the school's staff was negligent in any way, you would have the right to sue for financial compensation.
Schools with Immunity
In every state, there are laws in place to protect schools from being sued. In most states, these laws protect public schools by defining them as government entities. Having government immunity does not mean suing the school because your child was hurt is impossible, it just means you will have to jump through some additional hoops.
In this situation, you will need a personal injury lawyer, such as Putnam Lieb, to explain why your child's injury is an exception to the law. Examples of exceptions that would allow you to move forward with suing even though the school has immunity include a member of the school's staff was reckless, your child was intentionally injured, or your child's injury could have been prevented if he or she was being surprised properly.
If your child were to fall because of an uneven floor and break his or her arm, you should not have to struggle financially because of the unexpected medical bills and unplanned time off work. If your child gets injured at school and it puts you in a bad place financially, talk to a personal injury lawyer about your options.
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