A legal analysis of supervision and instruction in athletics

The knowledge of liability and common areas of lawsuits decreases injuries and issues of negligence in athletics. The purpose of this study was to analyze appellate court decisions (n = 35) in the United States in which improper supervision and instruction was the alleged cause of injury to the participant in a high school or collegiate athletic program from 1980 through 1999. Legal cases were examined from state and federal appellant court systems for this study. The legal analysis examined many factors involved in each case to advance the definition of supervision and instruction in athletics and sports coaching. The specific factors from the relevant cases were coded to determine frequency and significance between selected categories. The chi square test was used to determine statistical significance at the p < .05 level. The courts have determined coaches have a duty to properly supervise and instruct the athletes under their authority. The supervision provided should produce conditions in which the inherent risk of the activity is not increased. The coaches must also adequately instruct athletes about the use safety equipment and proper techniques to safely participant. Coaches should be aware of foreseeable risks in practice and games situations as well as nontraditional athletic related events. The results did demonstrate the cases are most often affirmed for the defendants and there has been an increase in the number of filed cases for the 1990 through 1999 time period.