Ayers v. Sports Imports Inc., Santa Barbara County Superior Court docket #1220316
On May 15, 2005, a 15 year old girl named Alexandra Ayers was participating in club volleyball at UC Santa Barbara’s Event Center when in the course of play jumped and landed on the base area of a portable referee stand, causing an anterior cruciate ligament rupture of the left knee among others. Plaintiff underwent numerous surgeries. Plaintiff claimed that she never fully recovered and as such lost a valuable scholarship to a major university. Plaintiff argued that she was considered one of the top 25 volleyball recruits in the country.
In sum, the plaintiff alleged that the sloping leg configuration of the referee stand was defective causing the stand to be in an area where players routinely land after spiking the ball. Plaintiff contended that UCSB was also negligent in that it replaced its old stands that did not protrude as much as the new referee stands. Defendant Sports Imports Inc. argued that it had never had any other reported injuries with this stand. Defendant UCSB argued that plaintiff’s parents had signed a waiver and release of liability and that the said stand was perfectly safe for its intended use.
The case settled for $295,000.00.
Penney and Associates handles all types of personal injury cases, including cases were individuals or their families have suffered serious injuries while at school due to the negligence of others. We cannot guarantee any outcome of your case that may or may not have similar facts to those noted above. Penney and Associates has offices throughout the state of California including Fairfield, Sacramento, Loomis, Roseville and Chico.
