ABSTRACT
The developing intersection between the law of negligence and sports coaching in the UK provides a profoundly distinctive context, as compared to that of the more traditional learned professions, in which to critically examine the issue of professional liability. More specifically, this chapter’s detailed consideration of the Bolam test in the context of sports coaching, where the majority of coaches are volunteers, reinforces the Bolam doctrine as a control mechanism designed to protect both claimants (e.g., injured athletes) and defendants (e.g., coaches) alike. Importantly, a fuller analysis of related jurisprudence, even in instances where defendant coaches lack a formal qualification and/or may not have engaged in considered and reasoned decision-making, reveals the potential for the Bolam test to operate as a quasi-defence, thereby safeguarding coaches from negligence liability due to a breach of duty of care. Nonetheless, in discharging the heightened standard of care incumbent upon them, coaches must ensure that the coaching practices adopted are regular, approved and capable of withstanding robust and logical scrutiny.
