[Paul Rainbolt]

Club officers and board members, field trial or hunt test chairman, secretary, committee, property owner and perhaps judges , marshals, gun captains, event safety coordinator , are all these unpaid volunteers are at risk of being individually sued should an accident resulting in permanent injury or death occur at a club test or trial?

 

[Guest]

Club officers and board members, field trial or hunt test chairman, secretary, committee, property owner and perhaps judges , marshals, gun captains, event safety coordinator , are all these unpaid volunteers are at risk of being individually sued should an accident resulting in permanent injury or death occur at a club test or trial?

all of them can be sued individually. I'm speaking from experience... Whether it holds up in court is another thing.

 

[Russ]

They definitely can be sued and can be held liable. The legal expenses alone can be astronomical. That is why it is important that clubs carry insurance that includes members and volunteers as insureds as well as covering suits brought by members.

In California, a well written liability waiver stands up in court. Those that participate in these events should have a homeowners policy and umbrella coverage to further protect themselves.

 

[Tom Watson]

liability

Anybody can be sued for anything if the plaintiff can find an attorney to take the case. This would extend to the land owner and the owner of the equipment involved in an accident. Those who render aid after the accident should have immunity under the good samaritan law.

If a suit is filed, you have no choice but to get your own attorney, so make sure your insurance covers defense legal expenses. They can be ruinous. Lawyers on both sides will be willing to settle the suit, but usually only after they have billed for a few hundred hours each.

The system sucks.

"The first thing we must do is kill all the lawyers"...William Shakespeare King Henry VI

 

[Charles C.]

Yep, damn ol' lawyers. Everything's their fault.

 

[TxFig]

Club officers and board members, field trial or hunt test chairman, secretary, committee, property owner and perhaps judges , marshals, gun captains, event safety coordinator , are all these unpaid volunteers are at risk of being individually sued should an accident resulting in permanent injury or death occur at a club test or trial?

all of them can be sued individually. I'm speaking from experience... Whether it holds up in court is another thing.

Basically what Kristie is saying here is that "anyone can be sued at any time for any thing."

It's true.

The other part of what she said is also true - getting it to stand up in court is another matter.


I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV. But in most cases (ie. with a reasonable jury & judge that are actually following the law), for a judgment to come out in favor of the plaintiff, gross negligence has to be proven.

 

[Patrick Johndrow]

Yes that is why I am going on record today saying I am NOT part of any field trial committee or hunt test committee this year.

 

[Tom Watson]

liability

Chris:

I agree with you, but my point is that it may cost you the price of a blossoming three year old Field Champion to prove you were not grossly negligent.

Innocent until proven guilty is expensive regards,

Tom

 

[Paul Rainbolt]

Yes you are Patrick, and if anything happens its your fault.

 

[Steve Amrein]

As stated just be sure that all are covered (insured) to handle this. Our club upped the insurance to make sure we were covered for just that reason.

 

[Paul Rainbolt]

We are inc. carry 2 mil$ in liability and have workman's comp. I think the best insurance is a no tolerance safety policy.

 

[Gun_Dog2002]

Hey, if someone wants to sue me for all my bills and things the bank owns, go for it.

/Paul

 

[TxFig]

Re: liability

Chris:

I agree with you, but my point is that it may cost you the price of a blossoming three year old Field Champion to prove you were not grossly negligent.

Innocent until proven guilty is expensive regards,

True. But that is true of anything we do in life.

Personally, I wouldn't want to live my life being afraid of being sued. Besides, what's that old saying:

You can't get blood from a rock...

Broke regards,

 

[Guest]

Hey, if someone wants to sue me for all my bills and things the bank owns, go for it.

/Paul

Yeah, no kidding. Joie and I just didn't want to lose the few little things we HAD actually paid for. LOL

 

[Russ]

I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV. But in most cases (ie. with a reasonable jury & judge that are actually following the law), for a judgment to come out in favor of the plaintiff, gross negligence has to be proven.

I am not a lawyer either, but part of my job is dealing with law suits

Maybe Texas has a different threshold than California, but here it is just negligence, not gross negligence. The negligence may even partial or contributory. A reasonable jury will listen to the judges instructions and decide accordingly. Improper supervision could be a cause of action.

Russ

 

[Tom Watson]

liability

Unfortunately, good and right don't always prevail. If you are not the deep pocket, you are definitely safer.

School of bitter experience regards,

Tom

 

[Gun_Dog2002]

Hey, if someone wants to sue me for all my bills and things the bank owns, go for it.

/Paul

Yeah, no kidding. Joie and I just didn't want to lose the few little things we HAD actually paid for. LOL

Hey, the dog food is paid for. Just stand behind the dog awhile and they can have it back.

/Paul