School districts must properly manage volunteers to protect children from negligent behavior. Districts can reduce the risk of using volunteers by developing volunteer-management policies and procedures; maintaining adequate liability insurance; developing descriptions of volunteer responsibilities; screening interested persons; and providing…

Discusses effectiveness of requiring students and parents to sign forms waiving schools' liability for students' sports injuries. Articulates rationale behind waivers and discusses recent cases in which courts invalidated waivers as violating public policy. Argues waivers are valid, enforceable contract against parents and do not violate public…

In a suit involving an assaulted Native American middle school student, a federal court judge granted the Philadelphia Public Schools' motion for summary judgment. Even in this post-Columbine era, senseless on-campus, student-to-student violence is generally not considered a civil-rights issue. Exceptions are noted. (MLH)

Superintendents who are knowledgeable about the law, understand its application to school operations, and provide ongoing training of site administrators are less likely to be mired in threatened lawsuits. The school attorney should be a valued, but not pivotal resource driving administrative decision making. Legal basics (including pitfalls)…

Discusses New York case involving harassment of a female high school junior by three other girls culminating in physical attack that results in serious brain injuries to the girl. Girl's parents sued school officials for negligence. Jury finds that the vice-principal acted in reckless disregard for girl's safety and awards parents $11.2 million…

Review of suit brought by high school basketball player against Iowa school district claiming the district was guilty of negligent misrepresentation. High school counselor advised student to take a communications course, saying it would satisfy NCAA core English requirements, but he later found out it did not, resulting in his loss of a…

In a case involving a somewhat sarcastic elementary teacher, a Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court reversed the state commissioner of education's affirmation of her dismissal based on persistent negligence. Results of teachers' alleged verbal abuse of students depends on the nature of the claim, not just specific evidence. (MLH)

Although athletic events generate their share of negligence lawsuits, the relatively small number, compared with other education areas, suggests that defenses (like assumption or risk and contributory negligence) have a better fit in athletics. Implications of newer litigation trends involving coaches' misconduct and interpretation of state…

Although no lawsuits claiming educational malpractice have yet been successful, it is conceivable that educators and school systems will be held legally accountable for correctly diagnosing pupils' needs, placing them in appropriate instructional programs, and reporting their progress to parents or guardians. This bulletin briefly examines…

To help educators understand their legal responsibilities when supervising students, this article reviews the elements of negligence (duty, breach, injury, and causation) an injured party must prove to hold an educator or school system legally accountable. The article also reviews basic defenses to negligence: immunity, comparative/contributory…

As school activities proliferate, questions surface about educators' legal responsibilities. Litigants must establish evidence regarding recognizable legal duty, breach of a recognizable duty, proximate cause, or injury. Principals are responsible for providing adequate supervision; employing competent, efficient personnel; instructing adequately;…

Two legal theories inspire suicide-related lawsuits: tort claims of negligence and constitutional claims based on due process. A well-known case illustrates a middle-schooler's suicide and a district's negligence. Liability factors include duty, foreseeability, special relationship, danger creation, and immunity/contributory negligence. (MLH)

A Florida student suicide case alleging administrative and school board negligence had mixed results. School officials must be vigilant about the possibility of student suicide and put appropriate procedures into place. The connections to school may include confidential communications, curricular linkages (educational films and student journals),…

Individuals wishing to establish a legal negligence claim against a principal must first present evidence of recognizable duty (adequate supervision); breach of duty; proximate cause; and injury. Wise principals schedule periodic meetings to review safety measures, focus on vulnerable areas, designate an emergency stand-in, review equipment and…

Litigation regarding children assaulted by other children in public schools has produced two strands of case law: sex discrimination cases (based on federal law) and negligence cases. School personnel have a moral and legal responsibility to provide for the physical and emotional safety of children under their care. A Michigan middle-school…