Los Angeles Unified school district is one of the nations largest school districts. The districts encompasses most of Los Angeles County and includes 968 different schools. The school districts has millions of students in its classrooms daily. Parents throughout Southern California place their children in the trust of the teachers and administrators of these schools. What happens if your child seriously hurt, injured or worse killed because of an accident or violent event at school. Is the school responsible ? In this series of entries I will share with you some past experiences of mine and others in dealing with school district liability and responsibility - as well as explaining some of the legal issued involved in injury claims against the school district.
Here is some basic law on school place injuries.
California law imposes upon school districts a duty to carefully supervise students
while they are on the school premises during the school day, and districts may be held liable for injuries caused by the failure to exercise such care. (Hoyem v.Manhattan Beach City Sch. Dist. (1978) 22 Cal.3d 508, 513.) Public employees, including school teachers, principals and administrators, are liable for injury caused by their own acts or omissions to the same extent as a private person, and public entities, including school districts, are liable for injuries caused by acts or omissions of their employees within the scope of employment. (Gov. Code §§§§ 820(a) and 815.2(a).)
Due to the special relationship between a school district and its students and their families, there is an affirmative duty on the district to take all reasonable steps to protect its students. This duty is based in part on the compulsory nature of education. (Rodriguez v. Inglewood Unified School Dist. (1986) 186 Cal.App.3d 707, 714-715.)
Since students spend most of their time in the classroom under the supervision of teachers, the burden to provide a safe and peaceful environment falls on their shoulders. As employees of a school district, public school teachers have a statutory duty to supervise their students in order to maintain this safe and welcoming environment. (Ed. Code §§ 44807; Dailey v. Los Angeles Unified School Dist. (1970) 2 Cal.3d 741, 747.) Teachers are required to "hold pupils to a strict account for their conduct on the way to and from school, on the playgrounds, or during recess," and may impose reasonable necessary physical restraint in order to maintain a safe environment. (Ed. Code §§ 44807.)
If you have any questions about in general or about a specific incident please contact The Halpern Law Firm . so that we can provide with specific answers to your questions.
First things first - Get immediate medical attention. If your child suffers an injury at school make sure they get the needed medical attention immediately. I always advise my clients that their health is the number one priority and they take all actions necessary to preserve their health. This means is your child is seriously injured - go to the emergency room or your pediatrician so that their injuries can be properly evaluated. If you do not have insurance your child may qualify for Medi - Cal or emergency Medi - Cal a hospital administrator should be able to help you complete the forms at the time of admission. If you know you wont qualify for medi - cal you should try to enroll your children in Los Angeles Healthy Kids Program. Information about these programs can be found at Healthy Kids / LA Care Health Plan.
If you do not have any coverage, an experienced attorney may be able to evaluate your potential case and provide you with a referral to a doctor who will provide your child with the needed medical attention. The attorney will make payment arrangement with the medical provider so that the doctor is paid out of any settlement or judgment in your case.
Worry and take care of the health of your child - let the lawyers take care of the legal stuff. It is very important that if you suspect that your child’s school injury was caused by the school, its employees or negligence on the part of the district that you contact a lawyer immediately to preserve your rights. A school district and its employees are public entities. With all government entities a Government Tort Claim must be filed within 6 months of the date of the negligence. If this deadline is not met your child’s right to recover damages may be lost.
If you have any questions or want more information about a school place injury please contact The Halpern Law Firm . for a complete confidential and free consultation.
