This past season a 16-year-old boy in a hockey league in Ottawa punched a referee. The referee did what was to be expected. He filed a lawsuit. Well, first he fell to the ground with a concussion, then he sued. But he didn’t just sue the 16-year-old, he sued the kid’s coach, who’d been a volunteer for the league for the past ten years. As spring and summer leagues are forming, if you are thinking of coaching your kid’s league, what should you do to insulate yourself from liability?
In this day and age, you can’t really find anything that someone can’t figure out a way to sue over. You should ABSOLUTELY not let that stop you from coaching, but you should take precautions. First, ask parents to sign a waiver, which can be as simple as a line that says: I understand that there are risks associated with any sport and I hereby agree to assume the risk of injury on behalf of myself and my child.” Also, look at safety issues. Inspect the field before you play for dangers. Implement procedures like keeping kids away from a swinging bat to prevent injuries—and perhaps most importantly, teach them good sportsmanship to prevent them from swinging a fist at others.
(Ed: This post was actually written by Amy, the smarter but less technically capable sister.)
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