Lawson

Chapter V

Legal Aspects and Considerations

Coaches and leaders in sport are responsible for protecting the athletes and the school or

organization. They can fulfill this obligation by conducting risk management assessments and by

following the guidelines in the Fourteen Legal Duties of Coaches and Athletic Personnel. “Duty

(as an element of negligence) refers to a responsibility toward others (arising from relationship

between parties) to protect them from unreasonable risk of injury” (Cotten & Wolohan, 2016, p.

42).

It is crucial for the athletics administrator along with athletics and school personnel to

conduct risk assessments of the athletics program and facilities, known as a risk management

plan. “A risk management plan is the systematic analysis of one’s operations for potential risks

or risk exposures and then setting forth a plan to reduce such exposures” (Cotten & Wolohan,

2016, p. 173). An example of a risk management plan is in Appendix E. Further, schools are

responsible for providing procedures for emergencies in an emergency action plan, as seen in

Appendix G.

The Fourteen Legal Duties of Athletic Personnel is a guideline for all areas of

responsibility that coaches and athletics directors oversee, (see Appendix F). These guidelines

ensure that they provide a safe environment for student-athletes and enable leaders and coaches

to practice and compete without fear of litigation and liability. The two legal issues that will be

discussed are the Duty to Supervise and the Duty to Ensure Student-Athletes Are Covered by

Injury Insurance. By bringing attention to areas for improvement and offering possible solutions,

___________ High School and its personnel will reduce injuries or incidents, and risk of legal

liability.

Duty to Supervise

This duty starts with athletics administrators, head coaches and coaches of the sport

programs. Teachers, coaches or administrators must always be physically present when a facility

is open. Supervision is critical at the high school level, as there is a wide spectrum or level of

maturity among student-athletes, which can lead to potential injuries or damage to facilities or

equipment. Athletics administrators are expected to supervise the coaching staff at contests, and

throughout a season during practice time when appropriate. This duty also requires that coaches

and athletics administrators supervise facilities in terms of condition, maintenance and proper

usage.

Athletics does not have a plan in place to make sure coaches and teachers secure

facilities. Presently, they are told to lock it up after class or practice ends, but no clear procedure

is in place. At ______ High School, gym doors are left open and equipment is left out. Practices

start without the presence of coaches who are in the office taking care of paperwork or other

tasks. Teachers leave the gym open between periods or at lunch.

Securing facilities is a vital component of this obligation. Open facilities without

supervision can lead to injury for students and athletes, or damage to equipment or facilities,

whether unintentional or a result of mischief and vandalism. The athletics administrator and the

school are responsible for addressing this duty, and rely on the coaches and instructors to abide

by the policies and procedures that secure and protect the athletes and facilities.

Several solutions and procedures can address the obligation to supervise. Keys can be

numbered and issued to teachers and coaches who are responsible for locking and unlocking the

gym before and after classes or practices. Keys will be collected at the end of each school year.

Procedures can be put into place to aid in supervision. For example, if multiple teams are using

the gym, each coach must remain there until the next coach arrives to supervise the student-

athletes on that team. A checklist could be posted for teachers and coaches to sign in and sign

out, verify that they locked or unlocked the facility, and the time they entered and left. Another

solution is to install an alarm, assign a code to each coach, and monitor everyone who enters and

leaves.

The associate vice-principal in charge of athletics tries to create a safe environment for

the visiting team, home team, spectators and student body. A brief public announcement on

appropriate behavior before each game could set the tone for behavior and reduce liability. The

physical education department has begun to address the duty to supervise and developed a plan

in which each period a specific teacher is in charge of locking the facility. Rather than observing

practices when the coach has requested that the athletics director is present, a regular schedule

for the AD to attend practices could be set up.

A yearly orientation and follow-up meetings with the school administrator and athletics

director could explain the policies and procedures for supervision. Head coaches need to know

that they are being held to a standard. A weekly schedule of the class or team that is using each

facility on campus would inform administrators, coaches, teachers and security of the individuals

that are responsible for supervision at all times. Each location should have a posted sign with

notification that individuals may not be in the facility without qualified supervision by

designated school personnel.

Currently at ______ High School, a facility repair request is given to the athletics

secretary and a ticket is created for the maintenance department with no real time line of repairs.

The weather conditions and frequent use take a toll on the physical facilities, and are a critical

factor in the reduction of risk and liability.

The athletics administrator should have a schedule of upkeep of facilities by the

appropriate maintenance department. This would include an updated equipment checklist from

each sport and a procedure for documenting issues with facilities. Periodic facility checks

especially after extreme weather situations, games, or school events, for cleaning, repair and

maintenance assists in efforts to avoid liability. These checks should be documented and kept on

file in the athletics administrator’s office.

Duty to Ensure Student-Athletes Are Covered by Injury Insurance

Athletes will not be cleared or allowed to participate without health or injury insurance.

This statement seems straightforward and simple, yet coaches allow athletes to practice without

being cleared. The justification ‘they are not going to get hurt or its just tennis, what can

happen’? These rationalizations happen all the time.

Athletics departments must have a procedure in place, such as registarmyathlete.com or

CIFSSHOME, that collects all pertinent information needed to be cleared to participate. _____

High School uses registarmyathlete.com to collect the updated physical, concussion test, and

current health or injury insurance. The athletics administrators are responsible for all student-

athletes to submit the documentation required to participate. Coaches are responsible for student-

athletes on their team to have basic medical coverage provided by the school or the family.

Athletics administrators and coaches have become liable by breaching this duty. Black

(1990) described breach of duty as “any violation or omission of a legal or moral duty. More

particularly, [it is] the neglect or failure to fulfill in a just and proper manner the duties of an

office or fiduciary employment” (as cited in Cotten & Wolohan, 2016, p. 45). Justifying or

ignoring the clearance procedure falls under the legal or moral duty of a coach or administrator

to make sure athletes are cleared before participating.

Unfortunately, meeting this duty is not always taken seriously at the high school. It is a

box to check or an afterthought rather than a topic of importance.

There are several ways that _______ High School can address this duty and avoid risk of

litigation. Optional insurance, such as Student Insurance USA, should be presented during

preseason parent meetings and electronically through school websites that parents can purchase

for student-athletes. This presentation should include the cost of optional insurance, coverage

and co-payments, total coverage, start and end dates of the policy, and benefits of supplementing

their coverage. It should be presented in multiple languages so that parents can understand

optional insurance.

The preseason meeting of coaches with the school administrator and AD at ______High

School must include the legal ramifications of allowing a student-athlete to practice or compete

without having valid health insurance and being cleared with the proper insurance must be

conveyed no matter how obvious or mundane it might seem. Athletics administrators are

responsible for maintaining files with the required documentation. Unfortunately, there is no

mechanism at _____ High School to check if the insurance information is valid or accurate.

Department policy should require that each form is reviewed and the information verified.

Coaches should carry a hard copy of insurance coverage information, a parent contact,

and waiver for medical attention for all athletes at all practices and competition. Although the

athletics secretary keeps a copy of this information on file for all athletes, the high school relies

too much on its athletics trainer to hold the information during practice times and home games.

Conclusion

Understanding the legal duties as an administrator or supervisor in any capacity is

extremely important, particularly the duty to supervise and the duty to ensure student-athletes are

covered by injury insurance. Although some aspects of these duties are not met at _______ High

School, there are processes and procedures that could be implemented to meet all requirements.

The failure to meet the obligations of these duties subject the school and athletics personnel to

possible litigation. Moreover, such a failure risks the safety and wellbeing of student-athletes.

Living in an era of litigation, one must be extremely careful and make sure everything is written

in a working plan and documented. Lack of supervision happens more often than not by teachers,

coaches and to some extent administrators. The athletics department and its administrator are

responsible for implementing policies and procedures that comply with the duties on a consistent

basis. This plan must also be communicated to all the stakeholders along with the ramifications

of not following the duties assigned to them. Athletics administrators must commit to abiding by

the Fourteen Legal Duties of Athletic Personnel and create a plan that can be embraced by

coaches and teachers. By doing this, the risk of injuries or incidents resulting in potential legal

liability will be reduced.

References

Cotten, D. J., & Wolohan, J. (2016). Law for recreation and sport managers. Dubuque, Iowa:

Kendall Hunt Publishing Co.

Any references used will be placed in Appendix C of your portfolio, not at the end of the paper.