J. Wayne Reitz Union
Educating Leaders for a Global Community
The concept that always seems to get lost in lawsuits against individuals and organizations is that the individual may be responsible for the injury he or she may have helped inflict on a victim. This can occur through a direct liability chain where he or she was involved in the incident, or indirectly where it can be shown that he or she was in a supervisory or executive position and the person committing the act was under his or her control.
While we may perceive that victims only go for the "deep pocket," all parties may share responsibility. If you are responsible or linked to responsibility based on your position in the group, you may be found liable. Payment could come out of your insurance in some circumstances (e.g. car insurance if your car was involved). If your act is not covered under a form of insurance, then you could have your paycheck garnished for an extended period, possibly years, until the judgment against you is paid. This means a percentage may be taken from your paycheck (fifteen percent or so) until the amount of the judgment is fulfilled. Your life could definitely change when you are responsible for a legal judgment.
Furthermore, applications for jobs, graduate schools, and professional schools often require disclosure of criminal records and information involving legal action. If you have had a civil suit judgment, it may need to be disclosed. Although most state and federal laws articulate that potential employers can not deny you a job because of your previous legal history, it may continue to be a problem.
The best way to avoid this unpleasantness is to avoid events and activities that could become risky business. Take the necessary precautions in planning your activities so that if something happens, liability will not follow you. When you are performing individual tasks, make sure you exercise the same type of caution and planning. Some of the recommendations that you and your organization may choose to consider are made in this section to help you potentially avoid liability if the situation presents itself. While no risk management plan is guaranteed, these techniques and considerations should help in the risk reduction and planning process for you and your group.
The Center for Student Activities and Involvement hopes this section on Risk Management will make your program planning easier and safer. In order for organizations to succeed, it is important to take precautions and carefully plan your activities to avoid situations which may jeopardize your membership and status. With all the wonderful traditions and opportunities at UF, we do not want to have your memories clouded with negative experiences or, worse yet, lawsuits. It is our intention that this section will help you think about the events you plan and what you should consider in making decisions about your organization.
Here is an example of how good event planning may help decrease your liabilities in case of an unfortunate event. The Canoe Enthusiasts Club planned a canoe trip down the Santa Fe River. During the event, participants were caught in an unexpected storm. Two of the participants drowned. The organizers of the event were sued but were not held liable by the court. The court found the organizers had taken the necessary precautions like having the canoeists accompanied by motorboats, having an experienced canoeist at the stern of the canoe, having veteran canoeists participate in the event, and having a local person monitor weather forecasts. In case you are thinking this could not happen, it did in New York in the case of Mintz v. State. What the court realized is that sometimes unavoidable things just happen. Of course, a court will not come to that conclusion until after it has scrutinized what the organization has done to plan the event looking specifically at the safety precautions and steps taken to ensure a smooth and safe event.
This example illustrates how important it is that leaders of all student organizations do everything they can to minimize the possibility of accidents and injuries while planning and programming events. There is no substitute for good planning. If the time is taken to think through an event logistically from start to finish, you will discover pitfalls which can be anticipated rather than ruin your event. You will discover that just a little planning will make a big difference in how things go in the success and, more importantly, the safety of your event.
In general, students participating in University sponsored events or activities may consider themselves as an "invitee" under the law. As such, the school or sponsoring organization has a duty to exercise reasonable care to:
