Hypothetically, let’s say I’m golfing and I’m in the fairway, someone hits from another direction and hits me and I receive an injury (use your imagination). Can I sue (with a chance of winning) the golf course or the actual golfer themselve? Or is it once I step onto the course I have acknowledged that the course will not be liable for any injury acquired while golfing, same to the golfer who hit me?
2006-07-30 08:54:03 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
The general legal theory being implicated by your question is known as "assumption of risk." Generally the law holds that when a person engages in certain types of activities, which have known and obvious risks, that the person accepts the possibility of injury is one of those risks comes to fruition.
The golf course is actually one of the most prominent examples provided in law schools to explain the concept to first-year students. In general, a person playing golf is (or ought to be) aware that doing so carries with it a distinct possibility of being hit by an errant ball. As such, you generally waive any right to sue either the golf course or the person striking the ball by stepping onto the course.
However, certain American jurisdictions (perhaps dominated by judges who love to golf) actually allow a golfer to recover in the circumstance you described. The responsibility to pay is always limited to the other golfer who hit the shot (never the golf course), and is usually dependent on whether or not the shot was errantly hit or inappropriately played. And usually, calling "fore" when the shot is hit will alert the people in front of you as to the need to take cover, and often that will alleviate legal responsibility for the person who hit the shot.
Either way, good golf etiquette (and the by-laws of some golf clubs) demands that the golfer who hit the shot offer to pay for minor injuries which result.
2006-07-30 09:17:58 · answer #1 · answered by DemonOly 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would think that common sense would tell you that walking onto a golf course, theres a possibility that a golf ball will hit you, HARD. If the course has something in their policy about it, then you probably wouldn't have a leg to stand on in court.
2006-07-30 08:59:50 · answer #2 · answered by cynthetiq 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Were they negligent, or were they doing what they are supposed to do on golf courses? You have to sign a release to go on most courses now anyway, or at least agree to be bound by thier rules.
2006-07-30 09:05:13 · answer #3 · answered by Catspaw 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no nothing can be done on the course - tough luck., if the ball travels outside of the course and hits you, you may have a case.
2006-07-30 08:58:21 · answer #4 · answered by DesignR 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have no idea, but how about accepting that accidences happen? Nobody is trying to kill you.
You don't need to sue anybody, tomorrow it might be your fault.
2006-07-30 08:59:53 · answer #5 · answered by dk_angel2005 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋