Because this seems to be the primary concern, per @Brent_Hubbs, it might be useful to look at what it would take to establish liability and the protections, present and future, against it. This is generic and will be familiar to the lawyers on this board. It does not apply to any specific case.
Negligence cases are what we call tort liability lawsuits. To establish a tort requires: the existence of a duty; violation of that duty; an injury which is the proximate cause in fact and in law.
We owe duties generally to our fellow human beings not to cause harm which is foreseeable. Most duties arise from foreseeability. A standard can also be created by a statute. If you travel at 100 miles per hour, for example, you should anticipate that you might harm someone but you have also violated a law against speeding. That is called negligence per se.
So, applying these generic tests to a college football program, it is easily provable that COVID presents a danger; that a school would be expected to know that; and that exposing persons to the disease might foreseeably cause harm. The devil is in the details. The University did not create and does not control the disease. So, how foreseeable is it that gathering people in a location might facilitate the spread and exacerbate a known risk? Depends on the circumstances. So the institution requires masks and does testing of its own.
If you are aware of a risk and choose to expose yourself to it, you have "assumed the risk," which is a defense. This can be characterized as comparative or contributory fault, depending on the jurisdiction.
So, how do we protect the University from liability? First by a state law that provides that no suit may be brought on any theory related to exposure to COVID. That may be too broad, but that would work. Second, by denying any waiver of sovereign immunity to allow a suit against UT as a public institution. (This would not apply to Vanderbilt, a private institution.)
Third, by asking all those who might be plaintiffs (student athletes, employees, visitors, family members, fans, etc.) to sign waivers. These are called exculpatory agreements and are generally enforceable, with certain exceptions.
If liability is the concern, address it and don't run from it. It can be done. I seriously doubt the legislatures of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas and Missouri would fail to join our own in this regard.
Negligence cases are what we call tort liability lawsuits. To establish a tort requires: the existence of a duty; violation of that duty; an injury which is the proximate cause in fact and in law.
We owe duties generally to our fellow human beings not to cause harm which is foreseeable. Most duties arise from foreseeability. A standard can also be created by a statute. If you travel at 100 miles per hour, for example, you should anticipate that you might harm someone but you have also violated a law against speeding. That is called negligence per se.
So, applying these generic tests to a college football program, it is easily provable that COVID presents a danger; that a school would be expected to know that; and that exposing persons to the disease might foreseeably cause harm. The devil is in the details. The University did not create and does not control the disease. So, how foreseeable is it that gathering people in a location might facilitate the spread and exacerbate a known risk? Depends on the circumstances. So the institution requires masks and does testing of its own.
If you are aware of a risk and choose to expose yourself to it, you have "assumed the risk," which is a defense. This can be characterized as comparative or contributory fault, depending on the jurisdiction.
So, how do we protect the University from liability? First by a state law that provides that no suit may be brought on any theory related to exposure to COVID. That may be too broad, but that would work. Second, by denying any waiver of sovereign immunity to allow a suit against UT as a public institution. (This would not apply to Vanderbilt, a private institution.)
Third, by asking all those who might be plaintiffs (student athletes, employees, visitors, family members, fans, etc.) to sign waivers. These are called exculpatory agreements and are generally enforceable, with certain exceptions.
If liability is the concern, address it and don't run from it. It can be done. I seriously doubt the legislatures of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas and Missouri would fail to join our own in this regard.
