Quote:
Originally Posted by Kelvin green
Everybody asks what do the athletic directors or governing officials say.... but
I’m going to ask what would your lawyer say?
Not enforcing a safety rule is never a good idea. Exposes the officiating crew to liability if an injury occurs when ignoring a safety rule. .. the coaches agreeing doesn’t help with liabilities.. in fact based on what I have seen from the California Supreme Court .......others generally do have a duty not to increase the risk of harm beyond what is inherent in the sport. (Kahn v. East Side Union High School )
The California Supreme Court has also noted, in dicta, that those responsible for maintaining athletic facilities have a similar duty not to increase the inherent risks. With intercollegiate sports competition, the host college or university owes a duty to home and visiting participants alike not to increase the risks inherent in the sport. I suspect they’d apply it to high school sports....
I wonder if padding wasn’t available or could have been.. poly high carb vinyl pad ( whatever that is) may not have been available but something else that was reasonable....even then that may not absolve liability
For most girls games I wouldn’t worry, but above the rim play would concern me for boys...
Some food for thought from a different perspective.....
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Very interesting. We officiated a DH earlier this winter where there were multiple slips due to moisture on the floor. I bet we called 6 travels due to it (kids hitting the floor). Multiple kids off the ball fell as well. I was worried I would slip while transitioning. I am guessing it was do to the weather outside (lots of snow), location of the entrance to the gym, and the sidelines being very close to the bleachers. The host school did everything they could to keep it dry but it was still and issue. The chances of a kid injuring themselves due to the moisture were much higher than the backboard issue we are discussing. I never thought about stopping the game and a lawsuit never crossed my mind.