If I broke my jaw on my high school campus during a JROTC event, can I sue the school or the JROTC for the medical bills and hardship I have endured since?

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If I broke my jaw on my high school campus during a JROTC event, can I sue the school or the JROTC for the medical bills and hardship I have endured since?

A little over 6 years ago, I broke my jaw during a high school JROTC function on my school’s campus. I was 16 at the time and had to undergo jaw surgery and painful therapy and pain while being wired shut for 3 months and then endured contiuous pain ever since with a botched root canal causing a tooth to rot, extreme sensetivity to many food types and cold in both food, beverage and the weather. Now I have consistant pain, TMJ, arthritus of the jaw, still have fractured teeth and are in severe need of braces and TMJ treatment that I am not able to afford.

Asked on March 28, 2012 under Personal Injury, Texas

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 12 years ago | Contributor

No, you probably cannot sue:

1) The statute of limitations (or time limit to sue) for a personal injury in TX is only two years. Even if you could argue that as a then-minor, you could not bring a legal action until your majority, that was still four years ago; hence it is almost certainly too late to bring a lawsuit.

2) Even if it were not too late to sue, you could only recover money if you could show that the school or the program was negligent, or unreasonably careless, in some way--such as by having you do an unreasonably dangerous event. If they were not negligent, they would not be liable for your injury. Not all injuries result in compensation.


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