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LAW REVIEW continued from page 22

question is a matter of legislative prerogative, and, of course, the General Assembly
could choose to address it differently. "
Colorado Statute
On May 14, 2003, the Colorado general
assembly did in fact choose to address the

parent/child waiver question " differently, "
adding Section 13-22-107 to the Colorado
Revised Statutes. In so doing, the state legislature expressly declared that " the Colorado supreme court's holding in [Cooper
v. Aspen Skiing Company] case number
00SC885, 48 P.3d 1229 (Colo. 2002) has not

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been adopted by the general assembly and
does not reflect the intent of the general assembly or the public policy of this state. "
Indeed, in passing C.R.S. § 13-22-107 into
law, the Colorado general assembly rejected
the notion that children needed judicial protection from parent/child waivers. Instead,
C.R.S. § 13-22-107, declares it to be " the public policy of this state " that " Children of this
state should have the maximum opportunity to participate in sporting, recreational,
educational, and other activities where certain risks may exist. " Further, the general
assembly found that " Public, private, and
non-profit entities providing these essential activities to children in Colorado need
a measure of protection against lawsuits,
and without the measure of protection these
entities may be unwilling or unable to provide the activities. "
Accordingly, in order to " encourage the
affordability and availability of youth activities in this state, " the expressed legislative
intent of the general assembly in C.R.S. §
13-22-107 is to permit " a parent of a child to
release a prospective negligence claim of
the child against certain persons and entities involved in providing the opportunity
to participate in the activities. " Specifically,
C.R.S. § 13-22-107 provides that " [a] parent
of a child may, on behalf of the child, release
or waive the child's prospective claim for
negligence. "
As a matter of public policy, C.R.S. §
13-22-107 expressly acknowledges that
" Parents have a fundamental right and responsibility to make decisions concerning
the care, custody, and control of their children " including making " conscious choices
every day on behalf of their children concerning the risks and benefits of participation in activities that may involve risk. "
According to the general assembly, " [t]
he law has long presumed that parents act
in the best interest of their children " and,
consequently, " proper parental choices
on behalf of children that should not be
ignored. " As a result, assuming the decision is " voluntary and informed, " C.R.S.
§ 13-22-107 states that a parent's decision
to waive a child's prospective negligence
claim " should be given the same dignity
as decisions regarding schooling, medical
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November 2009 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of November 2009 - Parks & Recreation
