Patterson v. Sacramento City Unified School District
California Court of Appeal
66 Cal. Rptr. 3d 337 (2007)
Relevant factsFree
Patterson (plaintiff), enrolled in a truck-driver training course run by the school district (defendant), was injured falling off a flatbed trailer during an unsupervised community-service activity loading wooden bleachers, with no instruction on proper loading procedure; he sued for negligence based on the district's alleged duty to supervise, and the trial court granted the district summary judgment on the theory that Patterson assumed the risk by participating in the course.
IssueFree
Whether a plaintiff's assumption of risk bars recovery only if the defendant owed no legal duty to protect the plaintiff from harm.