Just the other day a number of children were injured in an electrical incident at the Cultus Lake Water Slides. In some online commentary about whether the children could sue Cultus Lake Water Slides someone raised the issue that everyone who attends the waterslides has to have their parent agree to a waiver of liability.
This raises the question as to whether a parent can contractually waive liability on behalf of their child.
Generally speaking, due to the principle of freedom of contract, an adult can sign a waiver as a part of a contract to partake in a recreational or sporting activity in British Columbia and the courts will uphold the waiver as long as it is clearly worded and the fact the person is signing something that might affect their legal rights is properly brought to the person’s attention in the document.
When it comes to children’s activities such a My Gym, waterslides, trampoline parks, sports teams etc. parents are routinely asked to sign or agree online to waivers of liability on behalf of their children that purport to waive away all rights of the child to bring a personal injury claim against the business.
This very issue came up in the case of Wong v. Lok’s Martial Arts Centre Inc., 2009 BCSC 1385. In this case, a 12 year old boy was injured in a sparring match at a Hapkido martial arts school. The mother has a signed a membership form on behalf of the child that included wording that released the school for liability for injuries of any students while attending the school. The martial arts school argued that this document signed by the mother on behalf of the boy was binding on the boy and so therefore the case should be dismissed outright.
The court disagreed. After a careful review of the Infants Act [RSBC 1996] C. 223, which governs the ability of parents to enter into contracts on behalf of their children, the court said that this act “does not permit a parent or guardian to bind an infant to an agreement waiving the infant’s right to bring an action in damages in tort”.
This means it is impossible for a parent (or any other adult) to waive the rights of any child under 19 years old to make an injury claim for the negligence of others. It should also be noted that this same act also strictly curtails the ability of a minor to enter into contractual relations themselves, so it would also be unenforceable to have the minor sign the contract instead of the parent.
The take away is that parents can sign away on the liability waiver forms for their kid’s activities, as the waivers are not worth the paper they are written on when it comes to waiving liability on behalf of a minor.
If you have questions, or if your child has been injured in an accident, seek help from a qualified personal injury lawyer like Robert Carter as soon as possible.