When a member of a university’s swim team hurt her back, she said it was the fault of the school and its swim coach. Was she right?

Adi Segal injured her back while a member of the swim team at St. John’s University. She said the injury was caused by the training methods used by her coach, and she added that the coach continued to use the methods even after she complained of back pain.

Segal sued the university and the coach, accusing both defendants of negligence. She added claims of negligent hiring and negligent supervision against the university.

A trial court denied a defense motion for summary judgment, and the defendants appealed.

The appeals court reversed the decision to deny summary judgment on the negligent hiring and negligent supervision claims. Those doctrines don’t apply when an injured plaintiff seeks to recover damages based on actions taken by an employee in the scope of his employment, it explained.

However, Segal’s negligence claims were allowed to proceed. A question remained about whether the school and coach continued to employ challenged training methods even after Segal complained of pain. Also, it was too soon to say whether Segal assumed the risk of injury.

Cite: Segal v. St. John’s University.

Have a comment on the story above? Please share it below.

Tags: athletics, negligence, St. John's University