The following was originally published on www.sadlersports.com/blog/.
John Sadler responds to a frequently-asked question. Although there is little case law regarding this subject, John provides some “real life” advice.
Actual Client Question:
We were wondering if you require hard signatures on the release of liability form,
The Cohen v. Five Brooks Stable court (2008 Cal. App. LEXIs 222) gave some sound advice to writers of waivers. While acknowledging that California courts hold releases of liability to a high standard of clarity, the court emphasized that “An effective release is hard to draft only if the party for whom it is prepared desires to hide the ball,
Keeping waivers crystal clear can protect you from lawsuits.
Some waivers are upheld when challenged in a court of law, while others are not. Why do some waivers pass and some fail? All waivers must meet the standard of being clear and unambiguous, and the most frequent reason for failure is that the waiver was ambiguous and poorly written. The following four cases illustrate two well-written waivers and two poorly written waivers.
What is a waiver and how is it used? Do they work? Why do they fail? How do I write an effective waiver? Get the Answers! Liability waivers, contrary to misconceptions of providers in the past, can be effective in protecting providers from liability for injuries resulting from the negligence of the provider. Waivers are inexpensive to obtain, easy to administer and store, and can help protect providers from the consequences of their own mistakes.
Even experienced professionals in recreation, fitness, and sport often misunderstand or confuse some of the terms used. Below are some terms and their definitions that will help you better understand some of the documents that help to protect from liability.
By John Wolohan
From Athletic Business: An injured skier sees his negligence lawsuit slam right into a back-of-ticket waiver.
When trying to determine whether a waiver is valid, one of the first things the courts do is attempt to determine whether the service provider informed the injured individual about the waiver. Next, the court examines whether the individual (assuming his or her injury was caused by the negligence of the service provider) knowingly and willingly relinquished his or her right to sue the provider.
Protect your facility with unambiguous waivers, and make good decisions on the fitness floor to minimize risk.
Ning Yan fell while running on a treadmill, and died from his injuries. A representative of his estate sued,
