My son’s friend pushed him off the sidewalk into the path of an oncoming vehicle. Who is liable?
If the driver had no reasonable opportunity to avoid hitting your son, the driver is probably not going to have any liability for your son’s injuries. However, if the driver was speeding or not proceeding with sufficient caution and attention, he may be found to have had the “last clear chance” to avoid the accident which would result in the driver being held liable for at least some of your son’s injuries.
Your son’s friend may also be held liable for the horseplay which resulted in your son’s injuries. His parents may also be held liable for not sufficiently supervising their child. It is likely that their homeowners’ insurance may cover any damages assessed against the child or the parents. This depends on how the policy is written, and is an avenue that your attorney will explore.
How the case proceeds will depend, in part, on the age of the children involved, the extent of your son’s injuries, and whether either child noticed a car coming or should have been able to see the car coming. Another aspect of the case that should be examined is whether the children or vehicle were prevented from seeing one another until it was too late either by the way the road was designed or because brush was allowed to grow up and obstruct the view. Depending on what you find, either the city or the property owner could be brought into any action that you start .
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