Key point 7-20.4. A variety of defenses are available to a church that is sued as a result of an injury occurring on its premises.
* A New York court ruled that a boy who was injured when a large hole on a schoolyard basketball court caused him to fall and injure himself could not sue the school because the danger was open and obvious. Many churches have basketball courts or recreational equipment on their property that is used by neighborhood children during the week. Church leaders often are concerned about potential liability to the church for injuries that occur to minors using the church’s facilities, and wonder how this risk may be reduced or eliminated. Some wonder if the risk is too great to justify the use of recreational facilities. A recent case in New York is instructive. A 14-year-old boy was injured while playing basketball with several friends at a schoolyard owned by a public school. A hole in the surface of the basketball court caused him to fall. The boy estimated that the hole was two feet wide and two inches deep. He testified that he generally played basketball twice a week at one of several locations including the location where he was injured. He further testified that he had been playing basketball at the schoolyard where the injury occurred for approximately 40 minutes prior to the accident. The boy’s parents sued the school, claiming that it was responsible for their son’s injuries on the basis of negligence.
A trial court rejected the school’s request that the case be dismissed, and the school appealed. A state appeals court ruled that the trial court erred in not dismissing the case. It concluded: “A person who voluntarily participates in a sport or recreational activity is deemed to consent to those commonly appreciated risks which are inherent in and arise out of the nature of the sport generally and flow from such participation. This includes those risks associated with the construction of the playing surface and any open and obvious condition on it …. [The school established that it was entitled to have the case against it dismissed] by demonstrating that the victim voluntarily participated in the basketball game and that the hole in the surface of the court constituted an open and obvious condition.” Casey v. Garden City Park-New Hyde Park School District, 837 N.Y.S.2d 186 (N.Y.A.D. 2007).
