William Kritsonis, School Law, Ch 10 Liability Administrator

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William Allan Kritsonis, PhD
  LEGAL LIABILITY OF TEACHERS AND
ADMINISTRATORS

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Teachers have two basic dutiesto deliver
academic instruction and supervise students. The
courts have conveyed that teachers have a
mandatory duty to supervise students under their
direction during the school day as well as at
school-sponsored activities.
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SAFETY

• The process of teaching and learning takes place
  in an environment in which the rights of teachers
  and students are constantly being balanced
  against the rights and responsibilities of school
  officials to maintain a safe, caring and orderly
  environment (Webb 2000).

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• Teachers that are responsible for younger school
  aged children are held to a higher standard of
  care than teachers of more mature students.

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A higher standard of care is also demanded of
those teachers responsible for the physically or
mentally challenged, the vocational and
industrial arts, and the physical education
teachers.
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NEGLIGENCE

• The most common category of torts in education is
  negligence. Negligence may be defined as the
  omission to do something that a reasonable
  person, guided by those ordinary considerations
  that ordinarily regulate human affairs, would do.
  There are four ingredients to be proved before
  an educator can be found guilty of negligence
• A legal duty to provide appropriate standard care
• A failure in that duty to provide the reasonable
  standard of care (a breach of duty)
• A casual relationship between the negligent
  action and the resultant injury
• A physical or mental injury resulting in actual
  loss

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TORTS
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Ex. An unsafe stairwell

• The most frequently cited statute is the Texas
  Tort Claims Act. This spells out the
  circumstances under which a governmental entity
  in Texas can be held liable for a personal
  injury. The Act permits injured parties to
  recover from most governmental entities damages
  cause by the negligent acts of employees arising
  from the operation of motor vehicles or from some
  condition of public property.

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COURT CASES
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TEXAS TORT CLAIMS ACT

• 1978 Texas Supreme Court case, Barr v.
  BernhardStudent was severely injured when a calf
  he was tending to bumped a pole and caused the
  roof of a barn to collapse on him.

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TEXAS TORT CLAIMS ACT

• Heyer v. North East I. S. D.Student was power
  braking car in the school p-lot and car careened
  out of control and struck another student who was
  seriously injured. Court held that since vehicle
  was not owned or operated by an agent of the
  school district, the injury did not arise from
  the operation or use of a motor vehicle as
  contemplated by the Tort Claims Act exception
  and the school district was not liable.

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LIABILITY

• Courts have also held school officials personally
  liable for damages if they violate the clearly
  established constitutional rights of students and
  teachers. When planning professional
  development, administrators should make sure the
  following questions are addressed
• Are teachers required to supervise their students
  at all times?
• Can teachers be held liable if a student injures
  another student or teacher?
• Are there special legal definitions that impact
  upon teachers who supervise the cafeteria or
  playground?
• If teachers are careless, are they automatically
  liable for damages?
• Are there special liability standards for
  substitute teachers and student teachers?
• What is the assumption of risk? What is
  contributory negligence?
• Can teachers use governmental immunity as a
  defense against negligence?
• Can schools be held liable for failure to
  maintain a safe environment?
• What kinds of damages do the courts award?

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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• SUGGESTED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TOPICS
• Certification, Employment, Contracts, Collective
  Bargaining
• Due Process, Insubordination
• Student Records, Family Educational Rights and
  Privacy Act
• Standard of Care and Duty, Liability
• Copyrights and Fair Use
• Academic Freedom
• Freedom of Expression, Disruptive Speech, Slander
  and Libel
• Child Abuse and Neglect

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RESOURCES

• Fischer, L., Schimmel, D., Kelly, C. (1999).
  Teachers and the Law (5th ed.). New York
  Longman.
• Hogan, J. C. (1985). The Schools and the Courts,
  and the Public Interest. New York Lexington
  Books.
• Sewall, A. M. (1995). Teacher Liability What We
  Dont Know Might Hurt Us.
• Strope, J. L. (1984). School Activities and the
  Law. Reston Virginia NASSP.
• Walsh, J., Kemerer, F., Maniotis, L. (2005).
  The Educators Guide to Texas School Law.
  Austin University of Texas Press.
• Webb, L., Metha, A., Forbis Jordan, K. (2000).
  Foundations of American Education (3rd ed.). New
  Jersey Merrill.