Case of St. Ambrose Baseball Player Meets 'Covered Travel' Requirements

3 Pages Posted: 21 Jan 2009

See all articles by Timothy Liam Epstein

Timothy Liam Epstein

Duggan Bertsch, LLC; Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Date Written: December 7, 2007

Abstract

In Regan v. Mutual of Omaha Insurance Co., 2007 Ill. App. LEXIS 894 (1st Dist. Aug. 17, 2007), the Appellate Court of Illinois affirmed the trial court, which granted summary judgment to a collegiate baseball player who sued Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company after being paralyzed while diving into the ocean during a spring break baseball trip in March 2002.

Specifically, the Court found that the school's insurance policy covered the plaintiff's injury because the injury occurred during the school trip, and the plaintiff was complying with the rules imposed by the St. Ambrose University baseball team's coaching staff when injured.

The St. Ambrose University baseball team carried catastrophic athletic injury insurance as required by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The baseball team traveled from Midway Airport in Chicago, Illinois, to Miami to participate in the Homestead Challenge in Homestead, Florida. Players were responsible for their own airfare, hotel and food expenses during the trip, but the University paid for the players' transportation to and from the airports, the baseball games and the cost of entering the tournament. To raise the necessary funds, the players received money from pledges and sponsors. The players in turn handed the money over to the coach who controlled the funds. The funds were then used to pay for the team's airfare, hotel and meal expenses during the trip. Upon arrival in Florida, the coaches explained to the players the rules in effect for the entire trip as well as the consequences for breaking said rules. One such rule allowed the players to walk in the area around the hotel, including out onto the beach, without notifying anyone. St. Ambrose was scheduled to play baseball games on March 10, 11, 12 and 14-17; March 13 was their "day off."

Keywords: Regan, Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company, paralyzed, ocean, sport's law, sport's litigation, ocean, baseball, school, insurance policy, St. Ambrose University, team, athletic injury, Miami, Middway, tournament, pledges, sponsors.,

Suggested Citation

Epstein, Timothy Liam, Case of St. Ambrose Baseball Player Meets 'Covered Travel' Requirements (December 7, 2007). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1330472

Timothy Liam Epstein (Contact Author)

Duggan Bertsch, LLC ( email )

303 W Madison St #1000
Chicago, IL
United States

Loyola University Chicago School of Law ( email )

25 E. Pearson
Chicago, IL 60611
United States

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
49
Abstract Views
1,032
PlumX Metrics