If my son hurts someone in school wrestling practice can I be sued???

Any ideas where to look to find out I am freaking out over this

We are a very litigious society…in other words you can be sued by anyone for any reason. But, as long as your wrestler is a USAWA card holding competitor and the injury happened at a USAWA sanctioned event or practice, then I think the liability insurance provided by USAWA would provide you with liability coverage for the accidental injury (see page 7 of the Insurance Info Attachment ).

If you do a little on-line research you'll find that an accidental injury is not going to result in a successful damages claim. If your kid would intentionally or recklessly injure his opponent then that's a different story, as it should be. Here is a recent news report of a case that gives you a pretty good idea as to how these cases are approached:



A state court in Connecticut has dismissed parts of a complaint brought by the mother of a student, who alleged that a school district, coach and another student were responsible for an injury her daughter suffered in a floor hockey game.

In so ruling, the court found that a plaintiff must show “reckless or intentional conduct on the part of the defendant … to plead a cause of action for injuries sustained by a participant in a team contact sport. Proof of mere negligence will not suffice.”

The minor plaintiff claimed she was injured while participating in a mandatory floor hockey game which took place during a physical education class at James H. Moran Middle School in Wallingford, Connecticut. In counts five and six of her complaint, they alleged that Ashley Rivera was liable for negligently tripping her with a hockey stick during the floor hockey game. They further claim that Rivera “knew or should have known that pushing the hockey stick out in front of Marisa Lenti would cause her to fall to the gym floor” and that the defendant “failed to pay attention, with regard to the hockey stick she was running with, and negligently failed to warn the minor plaintiff of the imminent contact with the hockey stick.”

On July 13, 2009, the defendants moved to dismiss the complaint, relying on the Supreme Court's holding in Jaworski v. Kiernan, 241 Conn. 399, 696 A.2d 332 (1997), and its progeny in support of their argument that “the appropriate standard of liability to impose upon co-participants in a team sport is the duty to refrain from reckless or intentional conduct.”

The letter I received evens says My son did NOT act maliciously or intended to harm. and to have my home owners insurance contact his lawyer. Yeah right

If you have received a letter, give it to your insurance company, that's why you have insurance. The company will investigate the claim and then deny it. You won't have to be involved dealing with some irate parent and you won't be the one making the decision not to fork over money for an accident.

I wouldn't even give it to your homeowner's insurance company. It didn't even happen at your residence. This is someone just looking for a payout they aren't going to get!

Regardless of the problem, I'm not sure I would take legal advice from a sports message board!

This is pure specultion on my part; but I'm guessing that the reason whoever sent you the letter said that your son "did not act maliciously or intend to harm" was to squelch any notion that your home owner's carrier may have of asserting a policy defense. I'm sure that all home owner's premise and personal liability coverages include an exclusion for intentional acts. There's a big difference between malice and negligence. If someone is claiming damages due to the negligence of you or someone in your household, and you've got home owner's insurance I would report it to them and let their experts sort it out. If you don't have insurance they will probably go away. Of course sporto gave the best advice so far: you shouldn't be taking advice from a bunch of knuckleheads (myself included) on a sports message board. Good luck, and I hope everything turns out alright.

If you have a USAW card and the injury occurred during a "sanctioned" practice, I would start there first.

All I got to say after a couple of meeting today is you guys better read up on your homeowers insurance!!! School has not received any paperwork and said you are on your own.

All I got to say after a couple of meeting today is you guys better read up on your homeowers insurance!!! School has not received any paperwork and said you are on your own.

It would not be on the school's insurance. However, if you were practicing with a officially registered club, and it was a normal practice session, and the club sent your dues money into the State for your USAW membership, then there should be insurance for the hurt child under that policy.

And if the injury occurred during a sanctioned practice, an injury report should have been prepared and sent to USA wrestling...

If the injury happened during regular high school practice the high school has to have liability coverage as well.

I'd ask a lawyer before I gave anyone any insurance information.

This happen in middle school. and I did get a copy of the schools report today.
In the state of KS if you hire a lawyer and your insurance is named in the suit you assume al risk. so it is up to my insurance co.

Wow! Just in the last year my son had his hand broke and my daughter her arm broke both while wrestling and never in my mind did I consider suing the parents of the kids they were wrestling! As I recall also I signed something that stated that this was a contact sport that may cause injury and the liability was on myself and the usa wrestling insurance. That was the kids club. With HS you sign a form that your insurance covers 1st then the school has coverage. Shouldn't they have to go through the first 2 before they ask for anything from you? Which IMO they shouldn't because you know that every time your kid steps on the mat that there is the possibility of injury.

Quit worrying....it is BS....let it go. If this was a true concern you would leave your name. I think this is someone just trying to get something stirred up. Riverghost? Really?

This is 100% true no bullchit I post the letter if you don't believe me

I talked with alot of insurance people and in 35 years of doing insurance they have NEVER heard of this till now

What kind of parent would sue a teammate for an accident at their practice? Gees, I wouldn't want this family on our team. Accidents happen. If it was unintentional, take care of your own business!!!!

I wouldn't want that family on my team either. Blacklist em!!