To Use or Not to Use? the Status of Waivers in Intramural Sports

Abstract

Slightly more than 90% of university campus recreational sport administrators indicated that participants had incurred broken bones, fractures, or neck injuries in the past five years due to participation in an intramural sport activity. Greater than 40% of administrators revealed that more than seven participants had been injured to the extent that emergency medical service or hospitalization was needed. Yet, more than half of the respondents did not believe waivers provided protection from legal action. Waivers have often been viewed as being ineffective; however, courts are more frequently upholding them as exculpatory evidence, especially when the waiver is specific to the activity and the potential risks are identified. Thus, a waiver can be effective in both deterring and winning litigation brought against an organization if it is developed and administered in a way that will allow its power to protect the organization.

Gross Negligence, Inherent Risks, Assumption of Risks: Using Waivers to Protect Fitness Clubs

“…If a waiver is wellwritten, it identifies the inherent risks of the activity to the participant, as well as the lack of liability on the part of the organization for ordinary negligence if an injury occurs (Miller et al, 2009). Regarding the difficulty in reading the waiver, as alleged by Honeycutt, organizations may not be protected from liability due to injury unless the participant fully comprehends what they are signing (White & Cardinal, 2004).…”

“…This is significant as the doctrine of primary assumption of risk can completely bar a plaintiff 's claim, as it did in this case. In situations in which the lack of experience of a client is a factor, the organization would be wise to develop and implement waivers to identify and explain the inherent risks of the activities offered (Miller, Young, & Martin, 2009). …”

Do Entry Form Waivers Properly Inform Triathlon Participants of the Dangers of the Sport?

“…In a study involving the risk management of triathlons, Miller, Pauline, and Wendt (2014) reported that the majority of triathlon race directors indicated that the participants had to complete and turn in a waiver before competing in a triathlon. Because a waiver serves as a contractual agreement between two parties where the opportunity to participate is exchanged for a promise not to sue, it may serve as a significant deterrent against potential legal action (Cotten, 2007;Miller, Young, & Martin, 2009). An effective waiver must clearly communicate the risks involved in the activity and that it is the participant who waives his or her right to sue the triathlon organizer for injuries caused by ordinary negligence.…”

The Scope of Risk Management Policies and Practices Within Collegiate Recreational Sports: Reinvigorating the Conversation

“…Of the studies that have been published under the “legal liability and risk management” subsection of the journal, none have systematically studied the current scope of risk management policies and practices across institutions. Instead, previous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of risk management procedures in specific program areas, including intramural sports (Lee et al, 2010; McElveen et al, 2014) and club sports (Schneider et al, 2008), while others have questioned the relationship between liability and specific recreational sport risk management practices (Katz & Seifried, 2012; Miller, Young & Martin, 2009).…”