Re: Recreation providers' liability

Parents, camp operators decry court ruling on negligence
Many are worried about the possibility of rising fees and camps going out of business because of potential legal costs.
By Tiffany Hsu, Times Staff Writer
July 18, 2007

Several parents and day camp operators said Tuesday that a California Supreme Court ruling allowing recreation providers to be sued for gross negligence even if parents or participants signed a liability waiver is excessive and unfair to providers.

"Personally, I think this ruling's wrong," said Robert O'Neill, who was picking up his daughter Emma, 7, from SPF Beach Camp at Santa Monica Beach. "Ours is such a litigious society, and it gets out of control."

The decision Monday by the state high court means that, if an accident involving a participant was caused by gross negligence rather than ordinary negligence, the activity provider can be held liable, regardless of the language of a liability waiver.

O'Neill, a Santa Monica resident, had signed such a waiver for his children. He said the ruling could drive up camp fees as providers try to cover potential legal expenses. The financial impact of suits on small camp operations, he and others said, could drive some operations out of business.........................

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-camp18jul18,1,2735190.story?coll=la-headlines-california