'Baseball Rule' Suffers Another Blow in Foul Ball Case

[Illustration by Arnel Reynon]
[Illustration by Arnel Reynon]

This article appeared in the April issue of Athletic Business. Athletic Business is a free magazine for professionals in the athletic, fitness and recreation industry. Click here to subscribe.

Sports venue operators are undoubtedly familiar with the "baseball rule" — the primary assumption-of-risk defense that limits liability in negligence claims filed by injured baseball spectators. For decades, this defense has shielded defendants from liability, as courts have repeatedly determined that there are many inherent risks present when spectating at a baseball game. In the past few years, however, some state courts have limited the scope of the baseball rule. While grants of summary judgment to the teams and/or stadium operators — or outright case dismissals — used to be seemingly automatic in baseball cases, there is a developing trend away from the strict application of this legal precedent.

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