As Susan Ballan glided across the ice at a local ice-skating rink she encountered an unexpected obstacle and suffered a serious injury after falling and breaking her arm.
The accident was precipitated by a member of a group of "unruly [and] unsupervised" boys, between the ages of 6 and 10, who threw himself onto the ice directly in front of Ballan, in an attempt to topple another member of the group. Unable to maneuver out of the way, Ballan stumbled over the child and fell onto the ice.
Ballan later filed suit alleging that Arena Management (AM) breached a duty to monitor its patrons and deter their eckless conduct.
When AM moved to dismiss the case, the Saratoga County Supreme Court denied the request finding issues of fact which warranted a hearing or trial. On appeal, the Appellate Division, Third Department, concurred with that outcome.
While one assumes the risk of accidentally colliding with another while in the rink, a skater does not necessarily assume the risk of others' reckless or intentional misconduct.
As there were questions whether AM adequately supervised and controlled its patrons and whether Ballan assumed the risk of injury by skating in the presence of "infants" who clearly lacked any regard for the safety or well-being of those around them, the AD3 was of the opinion that summary judgment was appropriately denied.
And they say hockey players have all the fun.
For a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Ballan v. Arena Mgt. Group, LLC