Take Me Out at the Ball Game ?!!?

Does a spectator sitting in the grandstand hit by a ball at a baseball game stand a chance at a lawsuit?

In the summer of 2010, a trip to the ball park for a Georgia man and his 6-year -old daughter turned disastrous.  According to an article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, a “line drive sliced over the visitor’s dugout and into the crowd before anyone could get out of the way. The foul ball, struck at the August 30, 2010, Braves-Mets game at Turner Field, slammed into the head of a 6-year-old girl, fracturing her skull, damaging her brain.”

Earlier this year, the girl’s father filed a lawsuit against the Atlanta Braves and Major League Baseball (MLB), charging that the Braves and MLB failed to protect patrons in the ball park.  Disclaimers and warnings are usually printed on the backs of the tickets, and warnings are frequently posted on the electronic scoreboards throughout the game. The ball club’s lawyers will argue that they are “not the insurers of every spectator’s safety.”  The team’s defense counsel will also note that it would be impossible to put nets around the entire stadium and that fans often want the experience of catching a foul ball or home run that lands in the stands.

Herndon sports injury lawyer and Herndon High School baseball team sponsor Doug Landau advises that in Virginia, the doctrine of “Assumption of Risk” would likely mean such a case would be dismissed. Click here to read about another unique case where Landau believes the doctrine could come into play. Having published and tried cases involving sports injuries and “sports torts,” Herndon Virginia lawyer Doug Landau notes that the affirmative defense of “Assumption of the Risk” requires the voluntary assumption of a known risk. If you or someone you know has been injured at a sporting event and there are questions as to what laws apply, email or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555) at once.