Ohio Ski Law
Primary assumption of inherent danger by skiers pursuant to Ohio Rev. Code Ann. §§ 4169.01 to 4169.99. Skiers and operators both have duties, with the statutory enumeration of operators’ duties being exhaustive. Operation of a tramway does not constitute operation of a common carrier. Pending legislation, 2005 Ohio Senate Bill 61, would expand the ski safety scheme to explicitly include competitors freestyle skiers, ski tubers, and anyone using the facilities of a ski area; likewise, the examples of inherent risks would be greatly expanded, as would limitation of liability for “injury, death, or loss to person or property.” The proposed bill attempts to make each party responsible only for their own direct breaches of enumerated statutory duties.
Cases
Review a few Ski Law cases from Ohio below.
The Supreme Court held that it is evident that R.C. Chapter 4169, when viewed in its entirety, addresses certain obligations and limitations on liability pertaining to ski-area operators, as well as the relationship between ski-area operators and ski-area visitors. Consequently, neither R.C. 4169.08 nor 4169.09 apply to personal-injury litigation between skiers.
Having determined that R.C. Chapter 4169 does not apply to personal-injury litigation between skiers, the court turned to the common law to determine the proper standard of care applicable between skiers. This court had held that “[w]here individuals engage in recreational or sports activities, they assume the ordinary risks of the activity and cannot recover for any injury unless it can be shown that the other participant’s actions were either reckless or intentional as defined in [2 Restatement of the Law 2d, Torts, Section 500, and 1 Restatement of the Law 2d, Torts, Section 8A (1965)].”
The issue before the Court was what duty or standard of care is owed by one skier to another for purposes of determining tort liability. The Court held that skiers assume the ordinary risks of skiing, which include collisions with other skiers, and cannot recover for an injury unless it can be shown that the other skier’s actions were reckless or intentional. After discussing the evidence, the Court determined that a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether Ish’s actions were more than merely negligent, thus precluding the grant of summary judgment.
Prior to 2006
Risk of injury presented by fence at ski resort was an inherent risk, and was assumed by snowboarder pursuant to skiing safety statute, so that snowboarder could not recover against operator of resort for injuries sustained by snowboarder when he struck fence after encountering ice on slope and falling. Stone v. Alpine Valley Ski Area, 734 N.E.2d 888 (Ohio Ct. App. 1999). Statutory immunity does not apply when willful and wanton misconduct is alleged in the rental of ski equipment, per Otterbacher v. Brandywine Ski Center, Inc., 1990 WL 72327 (Ohio Ct. App.).