Rich's area - Is it time to drop the 3-man officiating crew?

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Rich

If anyone got hurt, they'd sue everyone, wouldn't they?

In Wisconsin, and in other states with such limiting guidelines in place, you're absolutely correct. Working a game by oneself in such states would be stupid, foolish, and negligent and would certainly open up one to a high degree of legal liability.

But there are states without such limitations, some (like Connecticut) actually have written one person mechanics guidelines in place, and some even have fee structures in place to accommodate such situations (example, 1.5 x fee) that could certainly mitigate any, but not all, legal liabilities.

I say "but not all" because in our modern litigious society, anybody, anywhere, can file a lawsuit against anybody else, for any reason. And even if one is not negligent and is innocent of any illegal behavior, one still has to hire an attorney, and they aren't inexpensive.

At the bare minimum (assuming no state or association guidelines) one should contact one's assigner to garner some advice before letting the gym door hit one in the ass on one's way out.

Leaving the gym on one's own (assuming no state or association guidelines) with no outside guidance (like contacting an assigner) could really upset a lot of people, coaches, site directors, athletic directors, school principals, and assigners, and in some states leaving with no outside guidance may expose one (and possibly their association) to legal issues regarding contract language.