Inadequate supervision, or lack of supervision, is the most common allegation of negligence involving children in schools and other organizations. It is estimated that 80% of plaintiffs’ allegations involve supervision.
That being said, inadequate supervision, or lack of supervision, may not necessarily create liability – it must be shown that the lack of supervision is actually the proximate cause of the injury. Further, for the plaintiff to recover there must first have been a duty to supervise the plaintiff on the part of the defendant. A key element is the distinction between a duty to render “specific” supervision and a duty to provide “general” supervision. Other issues deal with the competence of the person who is supervising, the location of the supervisor at the time of the injury and the number of supervisors on duty. Read more…
