School Field Trip Injuries: Who’s Liable?
As California parents start preparing for their children to go back to school, they’re getting ready to sign mountains of school paperwork—registration forms, school supply lists, and permission slips for field trips planned throughout the year. While most field trips go off without a hitch, there’s always the potential for injury. When a child is injured on a field trip, who’s liable—and what can parents do? This is where a personal injury lawyer can step in to help.
For nearly 30 years, attorney and founder Scot Thomas Moga has fought for clients at Moga Law Firm. He understands that the law can be incredibly confusing, often leaving parents unsure of their rights when their children are injured. If you’re looking for representation after a field trip injury, call our personal injury law firm at 909-931-2444 to set up a consultation now.
Common Types of Injuries
Injuries can happen in any number of ways during field trips, depending on the age of the child the location of the field trip. Personal injury lawyers have helped parents navigate many types of injuries, including:
- Slips, trips, and falls on uneven surfaces or stairs
- Transportation accidents on school or charter uses
- Sports and activity-related injuries during games and learning activities
- Food-related illness
- Accidents caused by third parties, such as amusement parts or museums
Schools’ Duty of Care
Schools are required to take reasonable steps to keep students safe. Their duty of care extends to students both at school and at any school-related event where they are the primary source of supervision, such as field trips. Note that this doesn’t mean teachers are always (or even usually) to blame when a child is injured—it simply means they must take reasonable steps to protect students from foreseeable injury. Schools must provide safe and supervised transportation to and from events, adequate supervision at field trips, and the tools and support needed to prevent accidents and injuries.
If a school is negligent and does not provide supervision, they may be held liable for injuries that follow. Note, though, that schools aren’t the only potentially liable party.
Who May Be Liable?
Your personal injury attorney may be able to determine who is liable for your child’s injuries by going through the sequence of events and reviewing evidence. Liable parties may include:
- School or school district: If the school does not take reasonable steps to keep students safe, the school or district may be held liable for accidents and injuries. For example, schools may fall short when they do not provide enough supervisors or chaperones, do not line up a safe transportation option, or choose an inherently unsafe field trip location.
- Teachers or chaperones: Teachers or chaperones may be held personally liable in some cases, but this is fairly rare. They are typically protected by the school district that either employs them or requests their volunteer services.
- Third-party venues: If the field trip location put students in harm’s way, they may be sued. This is true even if parents were required to sign a waiver.
- Transportation companies: Bus companies may be financially responsible if their drivers cause collisions.
What About Waivers?
Parents often think they have no recourse because they had to sign a waiver to send their children on a field trip. The fact is that waivers do offer some protections to schools and field trip venues, but they do not protect them from all liability. School districts and field trip venues still cannot be negligent or reckless. If their negligence leads to harm, a waiver doesn’t protect them from a lawsuit.
That’s why, even if you think you may not have a case, you should reach out to a personal injury attorney to discuss your options.
Filing a Lawsuit
The process you follow to file a lawsuit will depend largely on who the liable party is, which is where your lawyer comes in. If the school district is liable, you’ll need to follow the steps to sue the appropriate government agency. If the field trip venue or bus company is liable, your lawyer can use them as a private party.
Choose Moga Law Firm for Your Personal Injury Case
If your child was injured at a field trip because of someone else’s negligence, you have legal options—let’s talk about them. Schedule a consultation now by calling us at 909-931-2444 or sending us a message online.
Scot Thomas Moga, a dedicated attorney in San Bernardino & Riverside Counties who represents clients in the many types of personal injury, workers’ compensation and estate planning cases.
