Permission Slips

Jim Moss, a guide, lawyer and frequent poster to the Scouts-L list provided his views on the use of permission slips for scout outings. His suggestions forced our crew to review our administrative procedures.  They are shown below:


"1.  Don’t use permission slips. Waste of paper." They have no legal significance except to avoid a kidnapping charge.

2.  Do use a release/waiver. They allow you to treat, provide medical care and prevent someone from suing you or the BSA or your sponsor for anything that might happen to the youth or another adult.

3.  Remember, anyone can sue. Adults have sued the BSA for injuries they have received just as the parents of youth have.

4.  Have an attorney review your release/waiver. Don’t think you can write it.  You can’t.

5.  You can email it or post it on the web for parents to download. However, do so in a format that does not require a legal review to make sure the document you sent out is the same document you get back. Still best to hand them out in advance on paper and collect them. Always copy them and keep the original or a copy in a safe place.

6.  Dependent upon your jurisdiction, you might be able to get away with a once a year release. However you would have to be able to document you provided specific information to the youth and parents before each trip about each trip. Because releases/waivers have varying degrees of legal protection based on the state, most states require you to prove assumption of risk to defend against a suit by a minor.

7.  Assumption of Risk means you must prove that the participant knew and understood the risks and voluntarily agreed to undertake the risks. In some states, this has been changed to Contributory Negligence, but the basic idea is easier to understand if you remember Assumption of Risk.

8.  Therefore, to be effective, your waiver/release must both have the legal language of the law of the state where you are operating as well as specific facts about the risks of the activity. The document should be prepared for each activity and have both the parents' and minor’s signature on it.

It is crap that we in the BSA have to rely on these documents today, however, it is better to use the release than it is to defend your actions in a court of law.”

For more info, contact Jim Moss, jhmoss@earthlink.net, (970) 262-7275.