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Referees Liability |
The following document highlights the responsibilities and matters surrounding the personal liability of a referee with regards to the standards of basketball courts at various national league venues. The following clarifies any concern as to whether referees would personally, be liable for an injury that arose as a direct result of a venue not meeting the court standards laid down in the EBL regulations. Please be advised that the regulatory standards are only a recommendation. England Basketball cannot fully enforce these standards, currently, as there is no reliable research and evidence to support the fact that these standards would reduce the frequency and severity of injuries occurring in a game of basketball. To strictly enforce the court standards would in fact leave England Basketball liable to legal actions from clubs who did not fully meet the standards. Referees will be appointed to national league games by England Basketball stating which venue the game will be played. The referee can assume that this venue has been vetted accordingly and that England Basketball are fully aware of the conditions of that court. Referees must however still conduct a risk assessment of the venue with regards to the playing of the fixture, to ensure the playing court and equipment has not deteriorated or been tampered with to a point where it is unsafe to be play. For example, • A leaking roof on to the playing court, the game should not be played. • Obstacles that can be moved, and in your opinion should be moved such as, - Football goal posts - Spectators chair to close to the sideline Unless it is deemed unsafe to play the game then the game should go ahead. In the event that a venue does not meet the regulations and it is clear that it is far from them, it needs to be reported to England Basketball by completing an England Basketball Venue Checklist. The same principle applies for liability during play, as long as the referee can be shown to have acted reasonably, he will have a defense to a claim. One must remember that many injuries are caused by a mistimed challenge whether careless, reckless or with excessive force, by a player not by the referee. In most cases, all the referee can be expected to do is to take the appropriate enforcement action once the challenge has been made. He cannot prevent the challenge in the first place. It is the referee's responsibility to check ALL LICENSES. All personnel on the bench should hold a valid EBL license otherwise they are not permitted to sit on the bench. Table officials should also be licensed. |
