Illinois General Assembly - Illinois Compiled Statutes

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745 ILCS 80/1

(745 ILCS 80/1) (from Ch. 70, par. 701)

Sec. 1.

Manager, coach, umpire or referee
negligence standard.

(a) General rule.  Except as provided otherwise in
this Section, no person who, without compensation and as a volunteer,
renders services as a manager, coach, instructor, umpire or referee or who,
without compensation and as a volunteer, assists a manager, coach,
instructor, umpire or referee in a sports program of a nonprofit
association, shall be liable to any
person for any civil damages as a result of any acts or omissions in
rendering such services or in conducting or sponsoring such sports program,
unless the conduct of such person falls
substantially below the standards generally practiced and accepted in like
circumstances by similar persons
rendering such services or conducting or sponsoring such sports programs,
and unless it is shown that such person did an act
or omitted the doing of an act which such person
was under a recognized duty to another to do, knowing or having reason to
know that such act or omission created a substantial risk of actual harm to
the person or property of another.  It shall be insufficient to impose
liability to establish only that the conduct of such person
fell below ordinary standards of care.

(b) Exceptions.

(1) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as

affecting or modifying the liability of such person or a nonprofit association for any of the following:

(i) Acts or omissions relating to the

transportation of participants in a sports program or others to or from a game, event or practice.

(ii) Acts or omissions relating to the care and

maintenance of real estate unrelated to the practice or playing areas which such persons or nonprofit associations own, possess or control.

(2) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as

affecting or modifying any existing legal basis for determining the liability, or any defense thereto, of any person not covered by the standard of negligence established by this Section.

(c) Assumption of risk or comparative fault.  Nothing in this Section
shall be construed as affecting or modifying the doctrine of assumption of
risk or comparative fault on the part of the participant.

(d) Definitions.  As used in this Act the following words and
phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection:

"Compensation" means any payment for services performed but does not
include reimbursement for reasonable
expenses actually incurred or to be incurred or, solely in the case of
umpires or referees, a modest honorarium.

"Nonprofit association" means an entity which is organized as a
not-for-profit corporation under the laws of this State or the United
States or a nonprofit unincorporated association or any entity which is
authorized to do business
in this State as a not-for-profit corporation under the laws of this State,
including, but not limited to, youth or athletic associations, volunteer
fire, ambulance, religious, charitable, fraternal, veterans, civic, county
fair or agricultural associations, or any separately chartered auxiliary of
the foregoing, if organized and operated on a nonprofit basis.

"Sports program" means baseball (including softball), football, basketball,
soccer or any other competitive sport formally recognized as a sport by the
United States Olympic Committee as specified by and under the jurisdiction
of the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 (36 U.S.C. 371 et
seq.), the Amateur Athletic Union or the National Collegiate Athletic
Association.  The term shall be limited to a program or that portion of a
program that is organized for recreational purposes and whose activities
are substantially for such purposes and which is primarily for participants
who are 18 years of age or younger or whose 19th birthday occurs during the
year of participation or the competitive season, whichever is longer.
There shall, however, be no age limitation for programs operated for persons with physical or intellectual disabilities.

(e) Nothing in this Section is intended to bar any cause of action
against a nonprofit association or change the liability of such an
association which arises out of an act or omission of any person exempt
from liability under this Act.

(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15.)