North Carolina General Statutes 99E-7. Liability
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a farm animal activity sponsor, a farm animal professional, or any other person engaged in a farm animal activity, including a corporation or partnership, shall not be liable for an injury to or the death of a participant resulting from the inherent risks of farm animal activities, and, except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, no participant or participant’s representative shall maintain an action against or recover from a farm animal sponsor, a farm animal professional, or any other person engaged in a farm animal activity for injury, loss, damage, or death of the participant resulting exclusively from any of the inherent risks of farm animal activities. In any action for damages against a farm animal activity sponsor or a farm animal professional for a farm animal activity, the farm animal activity sponsor or farm animal professional must plead the affirmative defense of assumption of the risk of the farm animal activity by the participant.
(b) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall prevent or limit the liability of a farm animal activity sponsor, a farm animal professional, or any other person engaged in a farm animal activity if the farm animal activity sponsor, professional, or person engaged in a farm animal activity does any one or more of the following:
(1) Provides the equipment or tack and knew or should have known that the equipment or tack was faulty, and such faulty equipment or tack proximately caused the injury, damage, or death.
Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 99E-7
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
(2) Provides the farm animal and failed to make reasonable and prudent efforts to determine the ability of the participant to engage safely in the farm animal activity or to safely manage the particular farm animal.
(3) Commits an act or omission that constitutes willful or wanton disregard for the safety of the participant, and that act or omission proximately caused the injury, damage, or death.
(c) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall prevent or limit the liability of a farm animal activity sponsor, a farm animal professional, or any other person engaged in a farm animal activity under liability provisions as set forth in the products liability laws. (2013-265, s. 3.3.)