Unfortunately, harassment, intimidation, and bullying are rampant among students. It is the duty of a school, college, daycare center, or other agency responsible for the supervision and care of children in their custody to meet a professional standard of care when it comes to HIB incidents. During litigation, a school bullying expert witness can assist the plaintiff or defendant attorney with expert reports and testimony verifying whether the educational institution or other youth organization met that professional standard of care. A bullying and harassment expert from the School Liability Expert Group can conduct a review of the school or agency management systems and evaluate program quality and compliance, especially in regard to a bullying student injury. Our team provides consultation and expert witness services to attorneys, schools, and parents in matters of HIB.
Defining Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying
When facing HIB concerns, it is vital to understand exactly what to look for. A school bullying expert witness can confirm whether the incident qualifies as HIB or was merely student conflict. The legal definition of HIB may vary slightly across state lines but generally refers to any intentional written, verbal, or physical act or electronic communication that is motivated by any actual or perceived characteristic such as race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation. For a school to be held liable for HIB matters, the act or gesture must take place on school property, at a school-sponsored event, or on school transportation. However, schools may also be held liable for electronic communication (cyberbullying) that is so pervasive that it interferes with the victim’s education. A school bullying expert witness can attest to whether the cyberbullying reached that threshold, such as by fostering a hostile learning environment.
Bullying and harassment are terms that are often used interchangeably, but a bullying and harassment expert will note there are subtle differences. Bullying is when one student leverages physical, social, or emotional power over another individual to target the victim with repeated, unwanted words or actions. Physical acts of bullying, especially when causing a bullying student injury, are some of the most common cases that get a lot of attention. When bullying behavior is targeted at a member of a protected class– including but not limited to race, religion, sex, age, or disability– then a school bullying expert witness would consider it to be harassment. This is important to note as there are different federal protections for harassment victims than for victims of bullying.
Intimidation is often considered a form of bullying or harassment, but it is helpful to understand what makes it different. Legally, an act of intimidation occurs when someone frightens a victim into doing something. For example, one student physically stuffing the victim into a locker would be an act of bullying. However, if the student makes threats toward the victim until the victim goes into the locker on his or her own, that would be considered intimidation by a school bullying expert witness. If those threats were based upon the victim’s gender, religion, race, or other protected class, then this would be considered harassment as well.
School Liability in HIB Cases
A bullying and harassment expert from the School Liability Expert Group can evaluate compliance in matters of protecting students from HIB and bullying student injury. While a school cannot be expected to eliminate all forms of HIB incidents that occur, there is a professional standard of care they must meet. A school, college, daycare, or other child supervision organization or agency must reasonably protect the children under its care from harassment, intimidation, and bullying. With large-scale school bullying expert witness services, the School Liability Expert Group has established a process to quickly and reputably determine the viability of an HIB school liability case. With our adept research and specialized knowledge, we can verify if an institution or organization knew or should have known the harassment, intimidation, or bullying was occurring as well as if that school met its reasonable expectation of protection.
When incidents of HIB take place, the school may be held liable for negligence. Failure to meet the professional standard of care in student supervision can result in school negligence. When it comes to harassment, much of this standard is regulated by Title IX laws. However, as a school bullying expert witness can attest, there is room for interpretation within the specific wording of the law. For example, if a school administrator is made aware that a student is the victim of a bullying student injury and does not take any immediate action to eliminate or prevent the bullying behavior, then that does not meet the standard of care. A bullying and harassment expert can offer testimony as to whether or not the timing of the administrator’s response qualifies as “immediate.” School Liability Expert Group has the nuanced, extensive experience to comment on the speed of the administrator’s response to the situation.
School Bullying Expert Witness Services and Consultation
School Liability Expert Group offers expert witness services and consultation to both plaintiff and defendant attorneys in matters of student or child harassment, intimidation, and bullying. Our expert team will conduct an analysis of your HIB case, identifying the school’s duty to protect, the standard of care, the proximate cause of the incident, and the severity of the injury or other harm. With this information, our bullying and harassment experts can ascertain the viability of the case on behalf of either the plaintiff or the defendant.
Schools most commonly lose HIB-related lawsuits because they were informed of the bullying incidents and failed to take any action. A school bullying expert witness can review school policies and student records for both the bully and victim to render an opinion as to whether the school’s actions (or lack thereof) directly lead to the bullying student injury. For schools looking to improve their policies and minimize the risk of litigation, book a call with a bullying and harassment expert from School Liability Expert Group.