ASSUMED RISKS OF TEACHING
Marina Oetiker, founder and head coach at Downtown Tennis Club, was injured while instructing students at Hudson River Park. Apparently, the activity took place on a “rubber floor area that was damaged with depressions and cracks.”After she filed suit against the Hudson River Park Trust, and Friends of Hudson River Park, Inc., her case was thrown out because a New York County Supreme Court found that Oetiker had “assumed the risks of playing or coaching tennis” in that area.
And, on appeal, the Appellate Division, First Department, agreed and upheld the case’s dismissal. It noted that the assumption of risk doctrine did not require Oetiker to anticipate the "exact manner" in which her injury would incur, but only that she have an appreciation for the fact that there was a "potential for injury."
Was this their idea of showing her “love?"
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DECISION