Liability for Neighborhood Activities – Legal Aid Center

Questioner

We are neighbors who want to arrange a BBQ or something for about 70 neighbors. We are not an official neighborhood association. How can we rule out that we cannot be held liable for anything? We don't feel like getting official really. Can we have everyone sign for the time to rule this out?

Lawyer

For one-off outings and such, you are not directly an official organization, but that never excludes liability for one thing or another. For certain decisions and matters that are defective and/or too little supervision with accidents as a result, you personally, the organization or other group of people, building owners, landlords, alone or together at the same time, can always be held liable. Whether that is also granted and the extent of damage is another story. You can ask or demand in advance that people are insured, but that will not stop an insurer from playing the ball back. So a general exclusion for liability as you have in mind does not exist and will never be honored if demonstrable mistakes have been made.