Flying Crane, thanks, that's great information. But there are different laws state by state. Maybe they do it different out there. My previous Sifu was a lawyer, and he didn't see any issues with the waiver holding up here in Texas. It's far outside of my realm though... So yeah, it might be a good idea for insurance.
I am not an attorney, but my wife, father-in-law, and brother are attorneys, and I have worked in the legal industry for about 24 years so I’ve absorbed some things in that process, not to mention that my father works in the insurance industry and has always been very aware of liability issues.
So...there may be some differences state-by-state, but I would be very surprised if the differences are that great. I simply cannot believe that a waiver would automatically prevent a law suit, or would automatically require the plaintiff to reimburse you for your costs if you win in court. I believe you would need to file a separate suit in order to recover those costs, and would need to prove that the original plaintiff had deliberately filed a frivolous and malicious suit against you. Once again, your insurance helps you pay those legal costs and pays your judgement if you lose in court, up to the limits of your policy.
However, there can be a lot of gray area and your waiver can help your defense. It creates a record that your student knew of the risks involved in training, and chose to train anyways.
But if you act in a manner that is reckless or downright stupid or dangerous, and that results in a student getting injured, you will lose the court case.
Examples: you have a new student who has little or no athletic talents, and has never punched a heavy bag in his life. You tell him to punch the 150 pound bag. He is hesitant, and you insist. He does so gently. You keep telling him to punch it harder and harder. He is flustered and he breaks his wrist, incurring medical expenses and lost wages as a computer programmer. He sues you. Personally, I think he will win.
New scenario: you have a student who has been training with you for several years and has developed to a pretty high level. He has punched the 70 pound heavy bag many times in the past. He has a good deal of experience with it and never had an injury. But he has been away from training for six months, due to personal family issues and a new job. He comes back to class and wants to work on the bag. You tell him to go easy. He decides to slam away on the bag, and breaks his wrist. He sues you (unlikely given your history together, but you never know; perhaps his health insurance provider sues you to recover the medical costs, and he is out some wages as well and really has no choice but to sue you because he is missing house payments). I think you will win the suit, but you will need to pay a lawyer to defend you in court. The waiver helps, because it shows your student was formally informed of the risks in training, coupled with his years of experience. You might have an uphill battle winning a countersuit for legal fees. Better have some liability insurance.
My point is, legal disputes are seldom clear-cut and take time in court to resolve and decide who prevails. You need a lawyer to help you with that. A waiver is NOT NOT NOT a Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card. Showing the waiver to the judge will not make the suit simply go away.
If a lawyer advised his client that a waiver is plenty, and there is no need for insurance, in my opinion that is malpractice. You need a new lawyer.
