Facts about School Injuries and Suing the School District

Children spend nearly a quarter of their waking hours in school, so it is not surprising that a significant number of children’s injuries occur each year on school property.

Who is most likely to get injured at school? Nearly half of the school-related injuries are to children between the ages of 10 and 14. Boys are three times more likely to have a school-related injury than girls.

Common Injuries that Occur

Most school injuries are due to accidents, not physical assaults or other intentional injuries. The most frequent causes of school-related injuries are:

• Playground accidents
• Sports related injuries
• Slip and falls.

Playground injuries

Playground injuries are the most common injuries among elementary and middle school students. These accidents are most often associated with a lack of supervision.

The most common playground injuries are bone fractures, concussions, sprains, contusions/abrasions and lacerations.

Top equipment associated with injuries are climbers (23%), swings (22%), slides (17%) and overhead ladders (9%).

Sports-related injuries

School physical education classes and organized sports are the most common injuries among high school students. Approximately 715,000 sports or gym class injuries occur in and around schools each year. Interestingly, the majority of these accidents occur during practices rather than games. The most common injuries include concussions, fractures and sprains, contusions and abrasions. More serious cases can result in traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis and even death

Slip and Falls

Slip and falls can happen anywhere at school: in the hallways, the cafeteria, classroom, playground, parking lot or fields. They may be due to cracked floor tiles, defective stairs, wet floors, carelessness or objects on the floor. Students can be seriously hurt from a slip and fall and may suffer fractures, sprains, concussions and bruises.

Steps to Take if Your Child is Injured

It is possible to sue a school district, but there are time restrictions and additional procedures that must be followed when you sue a public entity. A competent personal injury lawyer can help ensure you meet these requirements.

It is important, for example, if you think you have a case against a school in New York State, to file a Notice of Claim within 90 days with the proper municipality. This is a document that gives notice that you intend to sue and provides a brief description of the accident.

Once you have filed the Notice of Claim, your attorney will thoroughly investigate the accident and collect the evidence needed to show the extent of your child’s injuries and detail . This will include gathering evidence to show the nature and extent of your child’s injuries and prove they resulted from a preventable accident that is the fault of the school.

Your lawyer will work a team that can include school officials and administrators, teachers, doctors and medical experts, investigators and engineers or other specialists that can inspect the site of the accident. In addition to taking care of the details, a good lawyer will keep you informed of any progress on the case and let you know what you can expect at each step of the process.

How We Can Help

If your child was involved in a school accident that you believe was caused by the school’s negligence, give us a call and we can discuss your case and answer your questions with no fee or obligation. We know you probably have a lot of questions and we want you to make an informed decision about your course of action as this affects your child and entire family.

Our experienced school injury lawyers work with a team of top investigators, experts and engineers to ensure we get the maximum compensation for your child’s injury. We know exactly what information is needed to win these cases and put all our efforts and resources into ensuring you get the results you deserve

Contact us today for a free consultation and let us go over your case and answer all your questions. We’ll discuss your legal options and determine the best course of action that takes your family’s needs into account.