We had a trampoline as a kid and my friends had to have signed waivers before they could jump. My dad was a lawyer, and he wasn't giving his retirement to some parent who's kid jumped wrong and broke something. 4 pages though? That's a bit much. I think ours was about 2 lines.

I can't believe that is just for the trampoline. It might also include a swimming pool and other stuff.

Or maybe the parents are embedded in the nanny state.

Someone who doesn't want to get sued these days is taking a perfectly reasonable precaution making someone else sign a liability waiver, since everyone has become a raging childish vagina ready to sue at the drop of a hat. Of course, no amount of waivers, signatures, or iron-clad contracts will save you when someone -- especially the state -- wants to destroy you.

We are river people in the summer, started going when my girls were really young. We also have jetskis. My girls always wanted to bring friends. The answer was always no. I would tell the girls their friends were more than welcome to come as long as their parents went. I didn't want the responsibility of someone else's kid around water, boats and jetskis, it can be a lethal combination. My girls didn't get it for a long time, they thought I was ridiculous. I think now that they are adults, they finally get it. So back to the topic, I don't think a waiver is out of line but 4 pages might be a little excessive for a trampoline. I might implement a 4 page waiver if I decided to take someone else's kid to the river though.

Even if the parents themselves arent the type to sue their insurance company might try to recoup the company's losses

"I don't think a waiver is out of line but 4 pages might be a little excessive for a trampoline. "

The reason it's that long is because they're trying to come up with a waiver that will actually stand up in court. Very few of them do, especially in cases where children are involved somehow. When it comes to liability these days, it's the Wild Wild West, and whoever has the biggest legal guns wins.

What's the worst that could happen, really?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceWZ624wBVA

"Each leap brings us closer to God".

Back in the 70s, our neighbors had other kids' parents sign a waiver to jump on the trampoline. They didn't have a pool or anything else.

Just remember that those liability waivers ain't worth the paper they're printed on.

Just like a pre-nuptial agreement, a good lawyer can get one vacated without much effort.

Better to vet your childrens' friends' parents first to see if they have an insatiable need to blame someone for everything that goes wrong in the world.

A colleague's child broke his arm while playing at a friend's house several years ago. Their insurance company put a huge amount of pressure on them to say who owned the house where the accident occurred. They finally had to get a lawyer friend to write a cease and desist letter to their own insurers because they didn't want to rat out a neighbor.

So I can understand why some parents might want to create these forms.

The length is just the result of lawyers throwing in every possible contingency. I recently had to sign a waiver to visit an observatory. I'm a professional astronomer but I still had to sign and initial 6 pages affirming that I understood that observatories host large equipment that could be dangerous, are located at high altitude with attendant health risks, etc. It was a depressing sign of the future.

A few years ago, my daughter fell and sprained her arm while jumping on a friend's trampoline. We went to the emergency room (thinking it was broken), and the friend's mother was apologizing and offering to pay. She was obviously concerned we'd sue. I told her to relax, that it was an accident that could've just as easily happened at my house, and I refused to accept her offer to pay.

It's kind of sad when that response is out of the norm. It's very common to sign waivers for trampolines. We got rid of ours long ago because of the added insurance costs. I believe the insurance company wanted us to have waivers too. It kind of takes all the fun out of it.

We need litigation reform! But since a high percentage of our legislators are lawyers, it'll never happen.

People's homeowners insurance IS supposed to pay the medical bills of people imjured on their property, so a health insurance company isn't in the wrong there.

Just remember that those liability waivers ain't worth the paper they're printed on.

This is true. You're still responsible for negligence, etc, no matter what waiver people have signed. Take the example of a public pool - if they get you to sign a waiver, then fill it with hydrochloric acid, does that get them off the hook? Of course not.

It all depends on the circumstances. If someone has a genuine accident, *maybe* the existence of a waiver demonstrating that you had highlighted the risks involved will help you. It's just a piece of paper to wave around in court though. It's not legally binding.

If, say, your rear deck collapses and someone can show that you knew it was in bad condition - well, you're liable and you're fucked. And rightly so.

The famous McDonalds coffee spill lawsuit was based on exactly that - there was evidence within the company that they had had warnings that the temp they kept the coffee at (to improve the flavour) was likely to cause 2nd degree burns if held against the skin - for instance, soaked into someone's clothing. They chose not to reduce the serving temp by 20degF to avoid that. So they were stuffed. The plaintiff in that case did get their damages reduced significantly on appeal because she was judged partly responsible.

What's ironic is that this is the same mentality of someone who won't let their kid play outside by themselves or walk home alone just because the worst COULD happen, even though it probably won't. I feel like at some point you just have to let go and have faith that your kid's friend's parents are not out to sue you. If you're really worried, make sure you get to know the other parents very well before letting the kids spent excessive unsupervised time together--but that's good parenting policy anyway. If you're really, REALLY worried, then maybe you should just skip the trampoline and save yourself the anxiety and paperwork.

Saving the anxiety and the paperwork is exactly what's behind taking monkey bars out of playgrounds.

Unless the population starts to understand how litigation has increasingly restricted our lives, as well as those of our kids, things will get worse.

I wouldn't sue a friend unless there was severe negligence, nor would I put a claim against their insurance unless I absolutely couldn't pay the bill myself.

I recently held a party at my home with some lady friends. I'd invited these woman who do certain procedures - fillers, permanent makeup, etc. I'd met the permanent makeup artist at another woman's party and really liked her work.
She brought along the filler lady that she works with at a clinic.

We had wine and appetizers, lots of fun, and almost every lady at the party decided to have botox or fillers. They signed paperwork declaring they knew the risks. Everyone loved the results.

But, over the next few days, one lady, a long-time friend, started complaining of side effects - headaches, backaches, and blurred vision.

I really began worrying that I'd be sued, and I discovered my homeowners insurance wouldn't cover me because that kind of party isn't actually legal in FL (I had no idea!).

In the end, my friend felt better and dropped the saber rattling. She said our friendship was more important, and she'd never intended to actually sue or scare me.

But I'll never host that kind of party again. Just as no parent who has a similar experience over a fall on a trampoline will likely keep it. Even when you don't get sued, the fear of being sued looms large.

Whether you're concerned about lawsuits or not, I think it's good to remember that ANY luxury becomes boring in two months at the most - even a swimming pool. And with a pool, you have to keep paying for maintenance. How is all that worth it, in the long run?

My favorite cliche: Less is more.

LS I wish I could've been at your party! I can not find a permanent make-up artist worth using here in central tx.

M4, I love my permanent makeup! Keep looking, it's really worth it. I've just done my lips, but it's so nice and looks really natural.