Is Your Child’s Daycare Liable for Injuries?
A daycare is not designed to make sure that every child is safe every moment of the day. That said, they do owe every child the highest degree of care possible with respect to the child’s age and activity level. Daycares, as upheld by the courts, are primarily intended to supervise children. The duty of these facilities is somewhat different to others that provide care or education to children.
Many parents wonder if a daycare can be held liable for injuries that their children incur. The short answer is ‘yes.’ The longer answer is ‘it depends.’ There are three typical theories that the courts hold when it comes to holding daycares liable for injuries. These are:
Negligence
If you can prove that a staff member or daycare owner was negligent and that negligence led to the injury of your child, you may have a case. For example, if your child was injured because a staff member failed to supervise an activity properly, they may be held liable. If, on the other hand, your child was being supervised, tripped and fell, a court may conclude that the person supervising your child could not have prevented the accident and was not negligent.
Negligence Per Se
Negligence per se means that someone acted in a way that was negligent because they broke the law. For example, if your child was injured at daycare and you can prove that the staff-t0-child ratio was being violated at the time, you could have a case.
Res Ipsa Loquitur
This Latin term means “the thing speaks for itself.” The legal theory means that the harm would not have occurred if it had not been for someone’s negligence. Many times courts use this in childcare injuries, saying that the child would not have been injured without the facility’s negligence.
If your child has been injured at a daycare in Austin, you undoubtedly have questions. A personal injury attorney on our team will review the details of your case at no cost to you. Call today for assistance or browse our website for more information about our firm and how we can help you.