Are you a parent to a child who has been bullied for a long time at school? Have you consistently reported the bullying incidents to the school’s administration to no avail? Have you tried other means to help your child stop the bullying? If so, then you may be on the verge of suing the school for bullying. As more avenues for bullying continue to arise, lawsuits against schools have also increased. Now, you probably have had an expert recommend legal action against the bullying.
Additionally, with the advancement in the legal spheres, there are cases where plaintiffs win large damage awards from bullying cases. Consequently, you might think it is the right path to take. The question becomes: should you sue your child’s school for bullying? Typically, suing the school for bullying will require great diligence and preparation. In essence, it might not work for all cases of bullying, especially since court cases require attention to detail and clear support for claims.
How to Be Certain That Suing Your Child’s School Will Work
Now, reporting cases of bullying severally to the school’s administration to no avail might seem like the best action to take. However, if you are not well prepared, it can ruin both you and your child. Additionally, it can subject your child to scrutiny and attention that may later be harmful to them. Typically, when you visit a lawyer and present a bullying case, they will take the case even if they can’t see any possibilities of winning.
This is essential because they will want to make some money at the end of the day. Therefore, it is advisable only to seek legal redress when and if you are well prepared psychologically, financially, and in terms of the child’s wellbeing, evidence, and court battles. The following are ways to ensure that suing the school works for you and your child.
1. Ensure That School Knows About the Bullying
Before you can go looking for a personal injury attorney to handle your child’s bullying case, you will need to ensure that you have reported all the bullying instances to the school’s administration. Essentially, a bullying case against the school may be actionable if it had learned about the bullying and failed to prevent or stop it. Currently, most government entities are protected from tort or personal injury claims. However, there are exceptions to these laws, so you should engage with an attorney who understands what can constitute a lawsuit in your case.
2. Learn to Be an Active Listener to Your Child
Normally, after school, your child will spend time with you. During this time, the child may want to tell you about incidences in school. When this happens, talk to your child in a way that they can open up to you. This will help you to understand what is happening to the child. Additionally, you can ask the child some open-ended questions so that you can understand all the details.
3. Ensure That Your Complaints Are in Record
Each time your child is bullied and a complaint is made, ensure that it is in writing. Normally, you may want to record the particular details of the incidence, the date, and the nature of the incidence. If possible, keep a record too that indicates the harm done to your child.
4. Limit Your Child’s Exposure to Online Media
The internet makes people feel untouchable. This goes for school children too. To ensure that your child is not bullied online, you can impose limits on what they can do with their devices. This will help you in the lawsuit. In any case, you don’t want the school to argue that you are an irresponsible parent.
5. Keep Detailed Records of All the Occurrences
Reporting bullying is not enough. You will need to keep records of all bullying instances with you. Essentially, you can keep images of the harm done to your kid plus other information such as when you reported the instance, who in the school’s administration it was reported to, the response from the administration, and other occurrences that followed.
6. Speak to the School’s Counsellor
A lawsuit requires that you leave no stone unturned. Therefore, you will need to visit the school and request a session with the school’s guidance and counseling officer. In this meeting, take your child with you. Essentially, the child and the counselor will help you understand the bullying and how it happens. Additionally, you will get to learn about the bullies and how the school has handled them. During this session, capture everything in the record. Additionally, get the counselor to put it in the record.
7. Take a Look at the School’s Code of Conduct
The final action to take is to evaluate the school’s ethical code for any loopholes in bullying. This will give you an understanding of why your complaints have not been fruitful yet.
Once you have taken all these steps, it is time to book a meeting with your attorney. Get them to evaluate all the evidence and information you have collected. This will help to build up a good case against the school. In the case there are other options to be taken, you should explore them. Subjecting a child to the rigors of a lawsuit can be psychologically draining and can also get them more enemies than friends.