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Injury Releases for Your Young Child Are Worthless in Alabama

by | Jun 12, 2020 | Allen A. Ritchie

Allen's Answers

Alabama says if you signed a pre-injury release for a young child, the child could still sue and possibly win. The reason – the legislature has determined that you can not sign away your child’s rights, and the boy or girl is too young to consent.

If those forms lack any legal standing in Alabama, why do businesses do them? The answer is simple. They want to intimidate parents.

Here is how the scam works. If the business gets you to sign something and then something goes wrong, the owners say that you agreed to the risk. Many parents will stop there.

Here are a couple of important things you need to know:

  • Under 19 years of age is what constitutes a child in Alabama.
  • Adult pre-injury releases can be valid if properly written.

Now, some businesses will require you to sign for your child as a condition of admission. I won’t tell you how to be a parent, but I will tell you that I have signed them so my child could participate. I signed them knowing that if something went wrong, they would not hold up in court. And, might I add, I was not going to be intimidated if my child got injured because of the business’s wrongdoing.

If you are hurt in a traffic accident or suffer a personal injury, you can talk to us at the Law Firm of Eiland and Ritchie for free. We want to help you get back on your feet. We are working remotely mostly but are always available.

Also, join us on NBC 15 LawCall here in Mobile every Sunday night at 10:30 right after the news. We will take your calls live. We are experimenting with new ways to do the show and still follow the CDC guidelines. You might want to see what we have come up with.

Allen Ritchie

Alabama personal injury lawyer

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