Letters to the Editor
departments
Fire Service Lawsuits
Fort Barry, Sausalito, Calif.
The advent of lawsuits against fire departments is not a new phenomenon. Rather, it is the beginning of negligence recovery, from the erosion of the sovereign immunity defense, that has occurred. The historical position, that “the fire department can do no wrong,” is quickly being eroded.
Contrary to your finding, “There seems to be widespread feeling that whenever something unfortunate happens to someone — even if it is his own fault — someone else must pay for it,” the unfortunate victim will not find universal recovery in suing the fire department. Rather, when the fire department exacerbates the victim’s injuries they will be held accountable. This is no different than for the common man.
Judgment avoidance is generally easy. Perform one’s duties in a professional manner, as a reasonable and prudent fire fighting professional would. The courts, generally, will not second guess the fireground commander. However, if one holds oneself out as a professional, the law will expect the job to be performed as such.
The fire departments can possibly protect themselves against adverse judgments through their service or support agreements. The community served would be required to assume a fire department’s legal defense and liability responsibilities as part of its contracted or agreed obligations. This would require individual case review and determination. However, considering the current legal trend, it is highly advised.
The time is ripe for departments to review their charters and service agreements regarding their professed services. Are they performing services beyond those stated? If so, individual members may not be protected by the corporate/charter umbrella. Work performed beyond the scope of one’s charter is not normally protected.
The time is upon us where the fire fighting professional will be held accountable to professional standards. The National Professional Qualifications Standards have been in force for some time. It is but a simple step for the legal community to measure one’s performance against these benchmarks. If we truly call ourselves professionals, we will be expected to measure up. Do we?
Timothy Callahan
Fire Protection Engineer, Law Student
