The National Football League has pledged more support to the study of head injuries. The professional sports organization says the goal of "Play Smart, Play Safe" is to explore ways to prevent, diagnose and treat head injuries that are known to result from playing this high-impact game. Part of the effort also involves hiring a medical doctor to serve as the league's chief medical officer. The person hired will work with each team's medical staff and create an independent scientific advisory board to weigh proposals for head injury research.
This $100 million pledge is in addition to the $100 million already pledged by the league for neuroscience and medical research. Just in the last 14 years, the agency has enacted a total of 42 rule changes in order to help protect players from head injuries. On top of that, the league has hired 29 additional medical professionals.
Product liability lawsuits may be on the horizon for hoverboard manufactures, as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reports at least 10 companies have recalled the devices.
A growing number of organizations are requiring a signature on liability waivers before allowing folks to participate. On one hand, these documents are supposed to help patrons stay informed of the possible risks. The problem is, people rarely read them – or read them thoroughly – and the details in the fine print are often the most critical.
Although these waivers – which are essentially contracts – are often upheld by courts, they can be successfully challenged on a number of grounds. One could argue the waiver didn't fully outline the exact risks. One might also argue that the waiver was inherently unfair. It's possible to say the language was unclear or ambiguous. One could also argue gross negligence.
Property owners and managers owe a duty of care to guests (and, in some cases, youthful trespassers) to ensure the site is reasonably safe for those who enter. Any dangerous conditions need to be either resolved or else those who enter should be warned.
But these requirements can be a bit complicated when we're talking about government-owned property. There are a few statutes that may impede one's effort to obtain compensation through a Florida personal injury lawsuit.
If you have suffered a personal injury in Florida, an important part of the legal analysis involves determining whether punitive damages can be successfully added to the claim. For plaintiffs, doing so is very likely to increase the potential value of the claim.
Punitive damages are awarded to penalize defendants for intentional misconduct or gross negligence, per F.S. 768.72. The statute requires injury plaintiffs to prove with clear and convincing evidence that defendant had actual knowledge of the wrongfulness of conduct and the high probability that defendant's conduct was so reckless or wanton in care that it amounted to a conscious disregard for or indifference to the life or safety of others.
When we send our children to school, we trust that those in charge (teachers, principals, coaches and aides) are going to properly supervise them in order to minimize their chance of injury. This is especially true when they are engaged in activities that pose a foreseeable risk. This is known as a duty of care.
Lack of supervision in and of itself doesn't necessarily establish liability. Plaintiffs in these cases have to show that this factor was a proximate cause of the child injury. In many situations, it comes down to the individual. This is why the level of supervision required for a 6-year-old would be much higher than it would be for a high school student.
In a recent case out of Connecticut, a mother is suing the school district, a gym teacher and a second-grade teacher after the child allegedly suffered serious injury to her arm during gym class while being directed to perform a gymnastics move.