A defendant is liable for negligent supervision of students in its custody for “forseeable injuries proximately related to the absence of adequate supervision.”  However, “school personnel cannot reasonably be expected to guard against all of the sudden, spontaneous acts that take place among students daily.”  “

In Grant v City of New York, plaintiff, age thirteen, was injured while running a hurdle race on a race track stadium during an optional field trip to Ichan Stadium on Randall’s Island, New York.  Plaintiff cleared the first and second hurdles, but fell when his toe hit the third hurdle.  Plaintiff sued the City, the Department of Education (“DOE”) and Randall’s Island for negligent supervision and negligent operation/control of the premises.

All defendants moved for summary judgment.  In granting the DOE’s motion, the Supreme Court of New York found the DOE was not liable for negligent supervision given the age of the plaintiff and that he was supervised by several teachers at the time of the incident.  In addressing plaintiff’s claims for negligent operation/control of the premises against the City/Randall’s Island, the Court found plaintiff presented no evidence the premises or equipment used in the hurdle race were unsafe, specifically since he successfully jumped over the first two hurdles and no one else who was participating in the race fell.

In sum, Courts are hesitant to place blame on public entities for negligent supervision when students are in fact supervised by their own teachers.

Thanks to Caroline Freilich for her contribution to this post.