Schools:

Schools are increasingly becoming places where legal disputes may eventuate. As education becomes more and more commercialised, and as the law is discovering new and additional liabilities for those involved in education as well as students, it may not be unusual to find schools being taken to court or accused of breaches of the law or their duties. The broad categories of legal disputes which may be encountered include the following:

• Duty of care and Negligence; and
• Vilification, Harassment and Discrimination on account of:
  • Gender;
  • Race and ethnicity;
  • Sexual orientation;
  • Religious conviction;
  • Disability;
  • Political orientation;
  • Freedom of expression; and
  • Administrative issues relating to:
    • Appeal of grades;
    • Disciplinary issues;
    • Procedural fairness; and
    • Natural justice.

Other issues may of course also be relevant, and the above is just a brief list of categories where disputes and litigation may take place. Some of the above will indeed overlap. For example, someone may claim a defence against allegations of vilification, discrimination and harassment as itself a disingenuous attempt to stifle free expression or to indeed harass, vilify and discriminate against someone because of their religious or political convictions. Moreover, some of the headings under administrative issues may also involve claims and allegations under Vilification, Harassment and Discrimination. Whatever the claim or allegation may be, it in turn may also constitute a breach of the school’s policies or the contract under which the student has been enrolled into that institution.

Litigation can be expensive and time consuming. It can be the cause of tremendous frustration, anxiety and stress. It is important that attempts are first made to resolve a matter where there is a dispute before filing any claim in a Court. This is where a schools lawyer may come in handy. A solicitor who deals with disputes against schools can be of assistance to either a parent of a student or the school itself: he can distil a complaint into its essence and therefore open a clear pathway towards a possible negotiated resolution. If this does not work, litigation is always an option that can be pursued.

Another large area of litigation against educational institutions involves breaches of their duty of care. This can arise where a student falls ill, suffers injury, or otherwise experiences loss or damage of some sort, where the school was in a position of responsibility over his welfare. Duty of care is the benchmark of professional conduct according to which a professional association or a professional individual is expected to behave. Where that duty of care is breached, negligence can then be established. To establish professional negligence against a school is of course a heavily fact based exercise because evidence must ground the claim to give it reasonable prospects of success. Only after the evidence is gathered can the law be investigated against the requisite professional standards.

A schools’ negligence solicitor will be able to provide legal advice to any person who is contemplating suing a school for professional negligence. Likewise, a negligence lawyer who has experience dealing with schools and educational institutions will be able to assist a school in preparing a defence against any allegations of professional negligence. It is important to contact an experienced solicitor or lawyer before any steps are taken in a case involving a claim of negligence against a school.

If you need help with a schools negligence dispute, you may wish to contact our firm by telephone on (02) 9233 4048 or email us at info@navado.com.au and make an appointment to speak to one of our solicitors. 

This webpage (and any material or wording appearing on this webpage) is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute any Legal Advice. It does not take into account your objectives, your instructions or all of the relevant facts and/or circumstances. Navado accepts no responsibility to any person who relies on the information provided on this website. We further refer you to our Disclaimer.