Purley

The following article appears in today's Leader-Post. And while I am obviously sorry for the woman who is paralyzed, where does personal responsibility come into this? After all, she was an adult, she chose to play ball around a pool. I would have thought that anyone with half a brain playing ball around a pool would have realized that there was a pretty good chance of falling in - and not when you were particularly under control of yourself leaping to catch a ball.

I have a pool. Can you imagine the amount of money she would get if she won? I have liability insurance for the pool - it might be $5,000,000 - but someone like that would probably get much more than that if they won!

So all you pool owners take care. Be sure that come spring I will be out there with the signs that say - Deep end - 9ft 6in. Shallow end - 2ft 6in. No diving, no playing ball, no jumping into the shallow end, no stupid behaviour!!!!!!!!!!!

Not sure if that would cover me against people choosing to do stupid things!

Injured woman
files lawsuit
By JANA G. PRUDEN
Leader-Post
A woman who was paralyzed jumping into a pool to catch a football is suing the hosts of the pool party where she was injured, the Town of Regina Beach, and the man who threw the football to her.


According to documents filed at Regina’s Court of Queen’s Bench on Tuesday, Jennifer Gabrysh is seeking undisclosed damages for pain, suffering and disability, loss of income and homemaking capacity, and the costs of her care. A statement of claim contains allegations which haven’t been proven in court.


The claim arises out of a July 14 incident at a residence in Regina Beach and names Gabrysh and her parents, John and Miriam, as plaintiffs.
...

The document alleges John Doe had a “duty of care to Jennifer to throw the football in such a manner so as to avoid any foreseeable risk of injury.” It alleges the accident was, in part, caused by the man’s failure to throw a football in a manner where it could be caught safely.


In a February interview, Gabrysh told the Leader-Post she planned to fly to San Diego with her parents on March 1 for a month of intensive therapy at Project Hope. A recent fundraiser took in close to $50,000 for Gabrysh and her family.

<balance of article at link>

Biiiiink

I don't have a pool...yet...they're supposed to start digging on April 1st but the April fool might be on me given the snow that's just fallen and the cold temps

We were wondering about offering the neighbours to use it, and this topic came up. Is your pool insurance added onto your home insurance Liz, and is it expensive?

We had planned to have a sports pool but others with pools convinced us that Jr might be 4 now but in no time he'll be flinging himself in the pool doing all kinds of acrobatics and it's better to have a deep end for that, obviously, so we went with the deep end/shallow end.

mc_dub

if we could all throw a football accurately we'd be millionnaires!

mandymoochops

This woman should be shot. The words accident and personal responsibility seem to have completely gone from everyday use.

I can't begin to put into words how angry this sort of thing makes me, so I won' but suffice to say :curse::curse::curse:

As an aside did anyone read abou the guy who fell from his horse on a trailride around these parts last year? The Hutterites let a big group of local riders use their land once a year to ride through to raise money for charity.

One guys horse got skittish and he fell off. He is trying to sue the Hutterites for something or other - its causing a bit of an uproar in these parts.

dbd33

To be fair to her, the phrase "duty of care to Jennifer to throw the football in such a manner so as to avoid any foreseeable risk of injury.” isn't one a person could come up with; there's plainly a lawyer involved. Obviously it's wrong to get involved with lawyers but I suspect she's merely greedy, it's likely the professionals who are inventive and mendacious.

mandymoochops

Possibly so but (and I mean this) if that were me and a lawyer came up to me in hospital (which is probably where they found her as I know they traipse the wards for accident victims) and said "hey I could get you a million dollars for your injuries"

My response word for word would be

"F**k off you leech, i'm not suing my mates cos I fell over, now get out of my room before I t**t you round the head with my life support system (aka tin of Cadburys Roses)"

Purley

Of course there are lawyers involved. The quotes are from the Statement of Claim that was issued in Queen's Bench.

Years ago I had a friend who had problems during the birth of her son. The same doctor had had problems with other patients and someone asked my friend if she was going to sue the doctor. She said that her son was how he was and she loved him as he was and suing the doctor would just add loads of hassle and stress to their lives.

As it is, her son has a minor handicap with one arm. He has cerebral palsy I believe. Anyway, he was in the - I can't remember if its the paralympics -- anyway the olympics for people with minor handicaps. My friend got to be a ref and she has been all over the world refereeing. It seems to me that she and her son have gained more from his handicap than they have lost. He is now an adult with a job and living on his own.

I agree with mandymoo -- if she wins (God forbid) it would certainly bankrupt most people. She would get 30 million or something.

Years ago my husband fell on some ice at a friend's and broke his ankle. He was laid up with pins in his ankle and then had to have surgery to remove them. Do you think we sued the friend???? I think not!

bazzz

Mine would be "SHOW ME THE MONEY", but then I don't have many friends to sue.

Edna Bucket

The document alleges John Doe had a "duty of care to Jennifer to throw the football in such a manner so as to avoid any foreseeable risk of injury." It alleges the accident was, in part, caused by the man's failure to throw a football in a manner where it could be caught safely.



She wasn't under an obligation to catch, or attempt to catch a ball regardless of the manner in which it was thrown

JonboyE

So does this mean that every football player (as in over here type of football) can sue their quarterback?

purple80

Might be a bit strong, but agree with Mandy and Edna....Shame she did not drown. Why can people not accept responsibility for their own actions? Why is everything always someone elses fault???

Charlie

Oakvillian

Quite. I think the defence could rest on the things-every-parent-says-to-their-children-about-free-will argument: If your so-called friends told you to go jump in a lake, would you do that? If your so-called friends leapt off a cliff, would you follow them?

windward

It's people like this that cause all the stupid sodding rules you see everywhere now - Effing 'Computer says no' syndrome.

daft batty

To think that people invite you into their homes, offer you food and alcohol to impair your judgement, have amateurs throwing balls for you to catch. . Was there any training, skills assessment?? I doubt it. They even have swimming pools full of water, and no lifeguard on duty.

Peanuts. I bet there were peanuts, and perfume was worn, lactose and gluten would have been rife. Wasps, were steps taken to exclude these??I wonder if the cheese and pineapple on stick snacks were adequately supervised, You could have yer eye out with one of those.

Purley

I downloaded a TV show broadcast on Brit TV in January, I believe. It was called "Repossession, Repossession, Repossession". One of the couples featured were a husband and wife from somewhere in the midlands. They had apparently lived in council houses for ever and finally, about 10 years before I think, they managed to buy their own house. But due presumably to overspending etc. they had had the house repossessed. He commented, very sadly "Everyone says its our own fault. But is not." Presumably he was attacked by some kind of Press Gang that forced him into buying every bloody toy imaginable on the never never and that eventually resulted in their not having enough money for their mortgage. Of course, he didn't say whose fault it was, but the premise for at least part of the show was lending institutions that lent people more money than they could afford to pay back!!

I don't think it had much mention about people borrowing more money than they could afford to pay back!! But of course that would be suggesting that it was the borrower's fault, whereas we all know that everything nowadays is someone else's fault!

I am not sure what the rules are for claiming against a homeowner's insurance for things like this. Perhaps we are being unfair - maybe all she is doing is trying to claim against their personal liability insurance or something.

BTW Biiink, I checked my insurance policy. I have $1 million swimming pool liability extension and it costs me $18 a year. As I said before, if a person was successful in suing a pool owner for their injuries, they would probably be awarded millions and millions. Supposing the person was someone with a high powered high income job?? I guess I will take my chances and leave mine where it is. BTW I have steps - not a ladder - into the pool in the shallow end and a diving board - and besides which there is a very obvious slope in the floor of the pool down into the deep end - and anyone but a blind person could tell which is shallow and which is deep.