Thoughts on this lawsuit?

[dmh165638]

http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/8...metal-bat-suit

A horrible situation for the kid and his family but how in the world is the bat manufacturer, sporting goods store, and little league held liable? This is the type of thing that would keep me from being a private business owner. Freak accidents or negligence is going to happen and you can't always place blame. This was a freak accident but something you agree could be possible when you agree to play any sport. If he had gotten hit in the exact same spot with a ball hit off a wooden bat would the injury have been any different? Settlements like this just open the door for more to come.

[TEAMJACOB]

i see no negligance. now, if a coach or official allowed a bat to be used that was already not allowed and this resulted in an injury, then that would be a completely different story.

[bcoop]

Don't most rec leagues require signed waivers that excludes them from liability?

The ball coming off metal bats can be very, very dangerous. They just revised the safety regulation regarding them. I know my son can't use bats that don't meet the BBCOR or USSSA 1.15 BPF standards.

[DON SVO]

like a medical malpractice suit, an intelligent (read: shyster) lawyer drags in every bit of business with insurance he can and sues them for their "part" in the case... When you have a 1MM lawsuit and there's 14 different insurance companies involved, you get a settlement since it breaks down to something "menial" to the insurance providers.

When I worked for StaffCare, we had doctors that didn't even know there were several small medical malpractice cases settled against them, stuff like 25-75K, because their name was attached to a much larger case where the anesthesiologist killed a patient but they were named in the suit. Insurance settled it for them.

[juiceweezl]

Don't most rec leagues require signed waivers that excludes them from liability?

The ball coming off metal bats can be very, very dangerous. They just revised the safety regulation regarding them. I know my son can't use bats that don't meet the BBCOR or USSSA 1.15 BPF standards.

The 1.15 BPF standard is over a decade old and a joke today. Little League is the absolute front runner in limiting bats. They already don't allow big barrel bats for 12 and under ages. The metal bats don't hold a candle to the composite bats either (most of which are banned by LL). It's a tragedy when something like this happens, but that's all it is unless someone used an altered bat or one that had been banned.

The bigger issue is poor coaching like not teaching a kid to keep his glove up after releasing a pitch (not saying that's what happened here, but I'd make a wager). You get that and then you get parents pushing their kid to "play up" so they can tell their buddies, "My son is playing with kids 2 years older than him." Forget the fact that the kid isn't physically ready or good enough to do that...

[GE]

When you have a 1MM lawsuit and there's 14 different insurance companies involved, you get a settlement since it breaks down to something "menial" to the insurance providers.

I can assure you, a $14+ million dollar settlement is by no means "menial" to an insurance carrier.

I have only vaguely heard about this case. If you have a set rule involving the Ball Exit Speed Ratio of bats, and governing bodies such as Little League agree to some sort of set standard, they have a duty owed to the kids playing in the league that the bats they play with are safe and meet the set requirements. If a bat exceeds those requirements, and Little League failed to enforce their rules, wouldn't you consider that a duty breached?

[DON SVO]

I can assure you, a $14+ million dollar settlement is by no means "menial" to an insurance carrier.

I have only vaguely heard about this case. If you have a set rule involving the Ball Exit Speed Ratio of bats, and governing bodies such as Little League agree to some sort of set standard, they have a duty owed to the kids playing in the league that the bats they play with are safe and meet the set requirements. If a bat exceeds those requirements, and Little League failed to enforce their rules, wouldn't you consider that a duty breached?

Oh not the 14MM dollar amount, but the methodology will be to go for $XXX and drag in as many insurance carriers as possible to get under coverage limits and maximize the settlement. Sue for 14MM, settle happily @ 7MM

[Crownline79]

Don't most rec leagues require signed waivers that excludes them from liability?

The ball coming off metal bats can be very, very dangerous. They just revised the safety regulation regarding them. I know my son can't use bats that don't meet the BBCOR or USSSA 1.15 BPF standards.

Half the crap we sign indemnifying others isn't upheld in torts. Its more of mind game to get you to think you've released them from any liability. Cell phone contracts are a prime example.

[Gear_Jammer]

If you have a set rule involving the Ball Exit Speed Ratio of bats, and governing bodies such as Little League agree to some sort of set standard, they have a duty owed to the kids playing in the league that the bats they play with are safe and meet the set requirements. If a bat exceeds those requirements, and Little League failed to enforce their rules, wouldn't you consider that a duty breached?

I would tend to agree with that, but if that's the case, I would think the coach of the opposing team might have some liability for not checking his players' bats and/or allowing them to use bats against the rules.

I can't think of how they get to the store that sold it and the manufacturer, unless the bat was incorrectly labeled as one not against the rules. Then again, it's not uncommon for the plaintiff to sue everyone that ever had anything to do with the situation and let them fight against each other as to who's liable.

[juiceweezl]

I would tend to agree with that, but if that's the case, I would think the coach of the opposing team might have some liability for not checking his players' bats and/or allowing them to use bats against the rules.

I can't think of how they get to the store that sold it and the manufacturer, unless the bat was incorrectly labeled as one not against the rules. Then again, it's not uncommon for the plaintiff to sue everyone that ever had anything to do with the situation and let them fight against each other as to who's liable.

The logic behind going for the store and anyone around is simple. Each year, there are 2-3 bats that are perceived to be "hotter" than all others. Since testing has expanded to go beyond the original release of bats, many mfg's are having to pull bats back from the market. In other words, a bat may pass the test at initial R&D and release. Six months later, they may retest and all of a sudden it fails (call it a composite bat "breaking in," or the alloy changes slightly from a supplier). Either way, the bat is now all of a sudden "illegal."

Now follow that process downhill. Sports Authority (and others) have bats on the rack for "Youth Baseball" and maybe even "Little League." A parent decides to get their son a new bat. Next thing you know it's in a game when it shouldn't be. Perhaps the league didn't notify the coaches/umpires. Perhaps they didn't know the kid had a new bat. Who knows? Someone ultimately wants to blame everyone in the process.

In the end, it's still just a tragedy. Say your prayers for everyone, cite examples that Little League should change the rules to slow down the bats, and move along.

Personally, I wish everyone would just use wood bats...

[95ragtop]

Someone yelled, "Call 911!" Within 90 seconds, a man trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation who had been playing catch with his 9-year-old daughter jumped over the fence and started to work on Steven.

Paramedics, who were a quarter-mile away doing a CPR demonstration, got to Steven within minutes, placed an oxygen mask over his face and rushed him to a hospital. But the damage had been done; his brain had been without oxygen for 15 to 20 minutes.

I am not understanding this, when the paramedics got to him he should have been on O2, not in 15-20 minutes. To bad there weren't more parents that knew CPR or had an AED close by.

[2011GT]

Half the crap we sign indemnifying others isn't upheld in torts. Its more of mind game to get you to think you've released them from any liability. Cell phone contracts are a prime example.

I would like to know more about cell phone contracts.

[Crownline79]

I would like to know more about cell phone contracts.

I wish i could remember but i think It has to do with the statute of frauds IIRC but its been years since I've taken a con law class. We did hypotheticals on the BS the cell companies try to indemnify.

[davbrucas]

Commotio cordis is what it is called. It basically causes V fib arrest and if CPR and defibrillation arent done right away, the person will die. It's unfortunate that the kid has brain damage but I do not agree with the lawsuit or settlement. There is no personal responsibility in this country anymore.

[Gear_Jammer]

The logic behind going for the store and anyone around is simple. Each year, there are 2-3 bats that are perceived to be "hotter" than all others. Since testing has expanded to go beyond the original release of bats, many mfg's are having to pull bats back from the market. In other words, a bat may pass the test at initial R&D and release. Six months later, they may retest and all of a sudden it fails (call it a composite bat "breaking in," or the alloy changes slightly from a supplier). Either way, the bat is now all of a sudden "illegal."

Now follow that process downhill. Sports Authority (and others) have bats on the rack for "Youth Baseball" and maybe even "Little League." A parent decides to get their son a new bat. Next thing you know it's in a game when it shouldn't be. Perhaps the league didn't notify the coaches/umpires. Perhaps they didn't know the kid had a new bat. Who knows? Someone ultimately wants to blame everyone in the process.

That's pretty much what I said. I'd need to read the petition to know whether either of those things were alleged. I would think that if they had been that we would have read something about it in an earlier news story.

It's unfortunate that the kid has brain damage but I do not agree with the lawsuit or settlement. There is no personal responsibility in this country anymore.

I totally agree. I'm a lawyer and make my money suing people, but refuse to for cases like this one.