Understanding Indemnification Agreements in the Autism Community

Part of the service provided to our readers is to raise awareness of legal issues that could impact the people we support. Today’s topic is one of a more general nature, which is to educate on a type of contract clause, called an indemnification agreement. These tend to be legalistic and formal structures found in the contracts used by businesses or organizations that provide a service. But they have a lot of implications for the autism community, especially the caregivers.

What Is An Indemnification Agreement?

In short, an indemnification agreement is a clause within a contract that helps to protect a business or organization from legal liability. In the most basic terms, if something goes wrong and a lawsuit is brought, a business or organization can use a legal document (the indemnity) to help keep themselves out of trouble.

When Do Indemnification Agreements Affect The Autism Community?

Indemnification agreements are relevant to the autism community because they restrict the legal claims that can be brought against a company. Personal injury claims are a common occurrence these days, especially in healthcare and school settings. Someone who has been injured may seek damages in court for their physical, emotional, and financial damages.

These are definitely tough matters for our special needs community already. If you’ve been following our blog, you may have seen our earlier post on disability liability waivers. That type of waiver is a release of legal claims for future claims and matters. Organizations will ask for these to prevent legal claims and lawsuits from being brought against them by those that receive their services.

This is similar in some respects to an indemnification agreement. But it is a bit different in that with these agreements, a client or patient waives their right to sue a company. With indemnification agreements, a company or business is protecting themselves from being sued. For example, it may be the family of a child with autism who goes to a school for special needs students. If an injury occurs whilst at the school, their family could bring a legal claim against the school for their child’s injuries.

If you are dealing with an injury at school or a group home that supports individuals with autism, you may find that signing a contract or agreement is required before any service is provided. It may be a school that has therapy services for children who have developmental disabilities or autism. It can also be an adult daycare service or respite care. Any time a service is provided by professionals, staff or teachers, an comprehensive indemnification agreement example may be presented to you.

What Is An Indemnification Agreement Example For Autism Care Providers?

One of the most relevant examples of indemnification agreements is the process used by schools for children with autism. If your child is enrolled in a special needs school, daycare or treatment center, there will be a contract for you to sign. Within that contract, there may be a clause that refers to indemnification. The extent of the legal language will vary but the concept should be similar to what we’ve already described.

By signing the document, you are agreeing to the terms. Those terms will indicate that if an injury is caused to you (the client) or the family (or representatives) of the client, then the businesses or organization will not be liable. The indemnification clause is meant to protect the organization from legal claims.

What Is An Indemnification Agreement Example For Families Or Individuals With Autism?

As a general rule, it will be a parent or guardian that signs a legal indemnification agreement. For the most part, the consequences of an indemnification agreement will vary depending on the nature of the incident. But you can imagine a couple of examples, which are provided below.

How Have Indemnifications Been Used For People With Autism?

The use of indemnification to limit liability has come into play at a daycare structure that supports a special needs population. In that case, a group home, supervision and aid were provided for the family. The family contracted with the facility to provide them with care. Unfortunately, an accident occurred and the client sustained serious injuries.

What legal actions were available to the family? Was the contract valid to prevent the family from seeking damages? Did the family have a right to bring a claim to court against the facility that provided the services?

In general, you will find that indemnification clauses will be used to limit the legal liability of an organization. But as we have seen, there are clear situations where families may have claims that need to be pursued.

This is not an easy area to navigate for clients, families and external services providers. The autismsupportnetwork.com site cannot provide legal advice – that can only be provided by your attorney. But by simply educating our family members and representatives about the existence of contractual clauses and offences, we are helping to promote the best legal outcome for those affected.

Additional Tips

We encourage our members to always have their legal documents reviewed carefully. Generally, organizations providing services to those with disabilities (including special needs children) face a high degree of liability. This means that having the proper coverage is important to them.

But this also means that families and individuals with disabilities have a right under the law to be protected. We recognize that when you are needed these services, you may feel pressured to sign anything required. Reading these documents carefully is therefore very important.

What Do You Do If Presented With An Indemnification Agreement Or Document Requiring A Release of Liability?

If possible, you should contact an attorney to review the documents. They can provide you with additional insight to the legal commitments and responsibilities that you may have to assume. The typical indemnification documents we have seen are drafted very broadly, so some negotiations may be possible.