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Do You Have a Claim for Daycare Negligence: Georgia Law

In Georgia, the essential elements of a cause of action for negligence are: (1) a legal duty; (2) a breach of this duty; (3) an injury; and (4) a causal connection between the breach and the injury. Most claims against day care centers proceed under the theory of negligent supervision and/or premises liability.

Under Georgia law, a daycare’s duty of care for child safety “is to be gauged by the standard of the average responsible parent; such person is not an insurer of the safety of the child and has no duty to foresee and guard against every possible hazard.” Many cases require expert testimony from credentialed child care workers or behaviorists to opine, for example, that it is “foreseeable” children of a certain age are apt to injure each other if unsupervised.

Vetting and Selecting the Right Daycare: Georgia Resources – Read more HERE

In some cases, negligence can be inferred by the nature of the injuries to the child, but in many instances that is not the case and significant expert testimony from child care professionals and medical doctors is needed to proceed with the claim.  Some examples include Persinger v. Step By Step Infant Development Center,  Ward v. Forrester Day Care, negligence inferable where 11–week–old child suffered unexplained broken arm in day care,  negligence inferable where 25–month–old child sustained a skull fracture while in day care,  negligence inferable where five-week-old child sustained animal bites while under the care of a nursery.

What Would the Potential Monetary Damages Look like for My Child?

Examples of Georgia families who have recovered monetary damages as the result of daycare negligence include:

• $9,850,000 verdict in Gwinnett daycare wrongful death case where the family’s 2 year old son drowned in a swimming pool at his daycare center;
• $1,200,000 verdict in favor of family whose 6 month old daughter sustained second degree burns to her arms, head and back when left unsupervised near a bottle heater/warmer;
• $750,000 settlement in a Gwinnett County case, where the 5 year old child sustained a severe laceration to his lower body when impaled by a broken swing;
• $55,000 settlement for a 3 year old who fractured his leg while climbing over railroad ties when the facility failed to comply with state mandated staffing ratios;

If your child has been injured while at daycare and you would like to speak with an attorney, please contact Ashley Spires to see how we can help. All inquiries are kept strictly confidential and initial consultations are free.