Halifax Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

Parental Waivers Not Worth the Paper They Are Printed On?

In what appears to be the first ruling of its kind in Canada, the British Columbia Supreme Court has ruled that parents cannot waive their children's rights to sue for negligence when the child is injured as a result of participating in recreational or sports activities.

In Wong v. Lock's Martial Arts Centre Inc, Justice Willcock held that British Columbia's Infants Act:

"Does not permit a parent or guardian to bind an infant to an agreement waiving the infant's right to bring an action in damages in tort"

The plaintiff, Victor Wong was 16 years old when he broke his arm participating in a martial arts sparing match organized by the defendant martial arts club.

Parent Waivers are Commonplace

Any parent who has had a child participate in minor hockey, basketball, football, martial arts, gymnastics and so on has probably signed a parental waiver. Typically the waivers are broadly worded and release the defendants from any cause of action whatsoever.

Recreational and Sports Organizations Will Have to Be Careful

I am not aware of any equivalent case law in Nova Scotia and this case appears to be the first of its kind in Canada. What it means for the future is that organizations that hold recreational or sports activities will need to be more vigilant to ensure that they are not negligent in the way they organize their activities.

What do you think? Have you ever signed one of those waivers? Ever read it? Perhaps you should next time.

On Saturday November 14, 2009, I was honoured to be elected as the Vice President of the Atlantic Provinces Trial Lawyers Association (APTLA).

APTLA is an organization dedicated to obtaining legal redress for those who have suffered injury or injustice.

APTLA was founded 10 years ago to help protect the rights of innocent citizens. In these challenging times of tort reform, the rights of innocent victims are being ripped away to increase the profits of insurance companies, and the need for a strong clear voice to speak up for the vulnerable is greater than ever.

I have been asked to speak at the Atlantic Province's Trial Lawyers Association conference tomorrow about certification of class actions.

The goals of class action legislation have been stated again and again in various decisions from other provinces across the country. They are:

(a) Access to justice;
(b) Judicial economy ; and,
(c) Deterrence or behaviour modification.

It is not necessary that all of these goals be present in any particular action in order for the claim to be certified as a class proceeding. However, to the extent that these goals are realized, there is a greater likelihood that the matter will be certified.

Access to Justice

Of the three goals of class actions I think the first, access to justice, is the most important.

Unfortunately claimants can't pick up a hot line and call The Justice League for help when they have a legal problem. For a variety of reasons, access to justice through the courts is something that is not available to many claimants.

That is where class actions can help level the playing field. They allow claimants who do not have the money, time, strength, courage, or resources to gain access to justice through the courts.