LAW

In Fighting Form

By Scott Aronowitz

Regardless of what level we officiate, sports are intense. Maintaining control of a contest to prevent escalation is one of our most important responsibilities, and preventive officiating will often accomplish this. However, with the tenor of many contests we officiate nowadays, fights may be inevitable; you need look no further than social media. Moreover, even preventive officiating can be ineffective in a tinderbox and, if so, it is most important to shift our focus to protecting ourselves, both physically and legally.

Your safety and the safety of your partners are paramount. Therefore, officials might consider incorporating a safety aspect into their pregame agendas, much like we do in college football and in other major sporting events. Each game site should have at the very least a game manager and

many sites employ law enforcement. Meet with these people to create a plan should things go awry, especially when it becomes necessary to vacate the premises quickly. In the alternative, locate these key people and develop a rapport when you arrive at a site or enter a field.

Altercations can pose a threat to officials. Usually, the athletes outsize us and they almost always outnumber us; moreover, spectator involvement can only exacerbate the situation. Human instinct dictates that we should step between participants to quell tempers, but that can only lead to us being inadvertently contacted. If you are injured after voluntarily injecting yourself into an altercation, your means of legal relief may be adversely affected because you assumed the risk of intervening. Moreover, if nobody sees how you were injured, there is less likelihood of holding perpetrators responsible.

Unless conditions render it necessary for personal protection, under no circumstances should officials put their hands on a player. While your intentions may be noble, your actions can be misconstrued; you expose yourself not only to injury on the spot (in retaliation, e.g.), but civil or criminal legal action on behalf of the person you contact.

Should a fight occur, and assuming you are not in danger, try to minimize the participant involvement and escalation by keeping participants on their benches or sidelines. Engaging team leaders — coaches, captains, managers — may help with this task.

Get out of the way and become an observer. Record uniform numbers and as soon as possible, preferably in a secure area with your partner(s), write down what you observed. This will preserve vital information and facilitate drafting a coherent, comprehensive and factual incident report, which you will likely need for your sport’s governing body and/or law enforcement.

When order is restored and the contest is going to continue, be certain the individuals involved are disciplined pursuant to the rules. Furthermore, ensure the environment is one that is conducive to a safe playing environment, which may necessitate ejecting spectators.

Finally, be certain you and your partners get home safely. Do not leave the premises unless you are escorted by game management or law enforcement. Again, this is not only for your personal protection but also to prevent any confrontation that can invoke liability.

We are human, and when altercations occur it is normal for our temperatures to rise consequentially. However, the best thing we can do is keep our composure to maintain sound judgment to best protect ourselves from physical harm and legal liability. Scott Aronowitz is an educator and attorney who lives in Orange Park, Fla. He has officiated high school football for over 20 years and was a college referee for seven years. He currently works replay in the Collegiate Officiating Consortium. This column is for informational purposes and is not legal advice. 

Altercations can pose a threat to officials.

Take a Waiver on Post-Injury Waiver

A player gets seriously hurt during a game you officiate. Before you get paid by the school, you’re asked to sign a waiver. Should you?

No, according to attorney Donald C.Collins, who wrote about this topic in a past Law column.

If you did, it’s possible basic contract law could invalidate the waiver anyway. The official has already entered into a contract to work a game, and is entitled to his or her pay without making any additional commitments. If a court should determine the school exerted leverage to get the official to sign a post-injury waiver, the waiver may not hold water. On the other hand, it is possible that the official was not compelled to sign and the waiver could stand.

Even if the waiver is valid, its effect is not clear. One would have to read the waiver. However, it is difficult to see how any waiver an official signs with a school would prevent an injured player from suing the official. The official’s concern when a player is injured should be with his or her own defense and liability, not with signing documents that may protect the school. Ultimately, the official should consult with his or her attorney and insurance representative before signing waivers.

Can’t Complain

Have a complaint about how your association is operating and want to make sure it’s heard?

Present the complaint in terms of how it relates to the bylaws or goals of the association. Focus on process rather than people, identifying what is being done, rather than who is doing it. Make sure you have your facts straight when you start making your case.

If it involves assigning, the best practice is to put the most positive face you can on the complaint and try to work with, rather than against, the assigner. Be respectful, explain how the situation appears to you without being accusatory, and ask what can be done to address the problem. If you’ve tried that to no avail, you may have to go to the association board, or even the schools or the state if the assigner does not work for the board.

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