Search Site
Menu

A Softball Injury Leads to a Federal Case


A case was recently decided in the federal court as a result of an injury occurring to a thirteen-year-old boy during a softball game at a National Guard outing. It was a “bench trial” meaning that it was decided by a judge and not a jury. The judge issued a detailed written opinion in this case of negligence, Woolf v. United States.

The case was tried in federal court because the defendant was the United States in this claim under what is called the Federal Tort Claims Act. Because the judge meticulously goes through his reasoning on negligence and damages there is much to be learned. This case affords us a great view into a fact finder’s reasoning. Hence, I am doing a series of blogs on this trial.

In this outing of U.S. Army National Guardsmen and their families, a softball game had taken place in the morning and then a pick up softball game took place in the afternoon. In the pick up game, the plaintiff, the thirteen-year-old boy, came on the field. His presence close to the field was known to the director of the event, a supervising officer.

The boy, unfortunately, was standing near the third base line and was walking towards home plate as a play was developing. It was a play in which the batter had hit a drive to the outfield and was coming around the bases when the boy was struck by a thrown ball from the catcher. The ball had been thrown in from the outfield to the catcher who was then trying to get the runner out at third. The boy was hit very hard on the head by the softball as he was heading down the third base line.

The question was: Was the softball game supervised properly by the U.S. military officer who was in charge of the picnic? The judge evaluated several factors.

One thing I want to say is that the judge did find comparative negligence and that was in an amount of 20%. That is, the boy was deemed negligent. The judge stated what the standard is for that: “A child is held to the standard of behavior expected from a child of like age, intelligence, and experience.” Yes, there was some negligence on the part of this boy but the greater negligence, 80% in fact, was on the United States government through its agent. The agent was the gentleman who was in charge of this picnic for the U.S. Army National Guard.

The injuries were quite bad. The young plaintiff suffered a significant head injury which has led to seizures, although they are controlled. He also has cognitive loss. The parents had what is called a loss of parental consortium under Massachusetts General Laws c.231, 85X.

The key factual issue (with its legal implications) was whether this young man should have been on the field during active play? I will get into more details of the liability in a future blog. In yet a third blog, I will discuss the damages and how the judge came to a monetary valuation of those damages. As you may realize, when our cases go to a verdict in Massachusetts, we only see whether a jury has found negligence and, if so, the amount of money to be awarded. Unlike this bench trial, we don’t see the reasoning for the award.

Let us learn what the judge’s reasoning was so that we can draw some general conclusions from this case – basically, a simple, if anything is ever simple- negligence case. Please consider reading and listening to future blogs as I hope they will be enlightening about what matters in the personal injury field.

Feinberg & Alban, P.C. fervently protects your rights
  • The Boston firm of Feinberg & Alban, P.C. specializes its practice in the area of personal injury.

    The attorneys serve the entire state of Massachusetts in addition to affiliating with lawyers in other states to handle cases outside of Massachusetts.

  • $7.7 Million Award for Feinberg & Alban Client in Personal Injury Trial

    Boston Attorneys Win Highest Injury Verdict in Massachusetts in 2011 & 2012.

Client Reviews
  • google
    5.0/5.0

    I’m a college student in the Boston area who suffered a pedestrian personal injury in December of 2022. Thankfully I was put into contact with Feinberg & Alban PC and I worked closely with Robert and Perry Feinberg who treated me with respect and f...

    Read more

    Anne O'Leary

  • google
    5.0/5.0

    Alexis Cahill was great, professional, and was open for me to contact on any questions I may have had during the process. Feinberg & Alban PC's services were nice as well, and I'd recommend them due to the transparency, what they were able to negotia...

    Read more

    Branden B.

  • google
    5.0/5.0

    My mom had a great experience with Feinberg as her attorney, after she fell near her house, and he took her under his wing. Mr. Feinberg was helpful, very organized and kind. He helped my mom a lot, very happy with results

    Read more

    Jane sungurov

  • google
    5.0/5.0

    I have been using Marsha Alban's services and advice for many years. Initially, I interviewed several lawyers, and Marsha was definitely the best! She took time to listen, she was very compassionate, and she explained everything in detail and answere...

    Read more

    Rena Sikarova

  • google
    5.0/5.0

    Wish I could give higher than a 5 for this review. From the start the dedication to detail, care and skill that was applied to my case was outstanding. Robert Feinberg is exceptional at representing his clients. His depth & breadth of experience make...

    Read more

    Rose M

See all reviews
Awards & Affiliations
Contact us

Quick Contact Form