My Child Was Injured in a School Bus Accident. What Now?

When your child is injured in a school bus accident, the first step is to secure their medical care. The next is to understand who is responsible and what you must do to protect your child’s right to compensation. This process involves identifying all potentially liable parties, such as the school district, the bus driver, another motorist, or the bus manufacturer.

Pursuing a claim, especially against a public entity like a school district in New Jersey, has strict and short deadlines. A Notice of Tort Claim, for instance, must typically be filed within 90 days of the accident. Missing this window permanently bars you from seeking recovery.

A clear legal strategy secures the resources necessary for your child’s full recovery, covering medical bills, future care, and the pain they have endured. Our firm, Maggiano, DiGirolamo & Lizzi, P.C., handles the legal requirements, freeing you to focus entirely on your child’s well-being.

If your child was harmed in a school bus incident and you have questions, call us. A team member is available to listen at (201) 585-9111.

Key Takeaways for New Jersey School Bus Accident Claims

You must file a Notice of Tort Claim within 90 days if a public school is involved. This is a strict, mandatory deadline, and missing it will permanently bar your ability to recover compensation from the government entity.
Multiple parties may be liable for the accident. Responsibility might extend beyond the bus driver to the school district, another motorist, or the bus manufacturer, and a full investigation is required to identify all of them.
School buses are common carriers and held to a higher standard of care. This legal status means operators have a heightened duty to ensure passenger safety, which is a key factor in proving negligence.

Who Is Legally Responsible When a School Bus Crashes?

The responsibility for a school bus accident is not always straightforward; it could lie with one or several parties. Our investigation focuses on identifying everyone who contributed to the incident and holding them accountable.

In New Jersey, a school bus is considered a “common carrier.” This is a legal term that means the operator has a heightened duty of care to ensure the safety of its passengers. This is a higher standard than the one applied to typical drivers on the road.

Potential Parties in School Bus Accident Claims

The School District or Private School

A school district is responsible for the hiring, training, and supervision of its drivers. It must also ensure its buses are properly maintained and safe.

This legal responsibility falls under a doctrine called respondeat superior, which holds an employer accountable for an employee’s actions on the job. We will investigate hiring practices, driver background checks, and training protocols to determine if the district fulfilled its duties.

The School Bus Driver

The driver must operate the bus with reasonable care at all times. Actions like speeding, distracted driving (such as using a cell phone), or driving under the influence constitute a breach of this duty. When building a case, we will look at the driver’s history, toxicology reports, phone records, and any citations issued by police at the scene to see if negligence occurred.

Another Driver on the Road

Many school bus accidents are caused not by the bus driver but by other motorists. A national one-day survey suggests that drivers illegally pass stopped school buses millions of times over the course of a school year, creating incredibly dangerous situations for children entering or exiting the bus. Our firm pursues claims against any driver whose negligence, like running a red light, tailgating, or rear-ending the bus, caused the collision.

The Bus Manufacturer or Maintenance Company

Sometimes, the cause is a mechanical failure. A defect in the bus itself may have caused or worsened the injuries sustained. Examples include faulty brakes, tire blowouts, or a structural failure that does not meet the strict Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards designed to protect occupants.

Additionally, a third-party company hired for maintenance could also be responsible if its work was substandard and led to the mechanical failure.

When is a School District Immune, and When Is It Not?

School districts have certain statutory immunities, but those protections are not absolute. The law draws a line between policy choices where the district uses judgment, and routine, day-to-day tasks where the district must follow basic safety obligations.

Two Short Rules That Matter to You

Discretionary acts: If the district was making a policy choice that required judgment (for example, deciding how to allocate limited funds across programs), the district is often protected by immunity. The statute recognizes that public entities cannot be second-guessed for genuine policy decisions.
Ministerial duties: If the act was ministerial (for example, a routine duty the district must perform in a specific way, such as properly licensing a bus driver, conducting required background checks, or following a set safety protocol), immunity usually does not apply. Courts treat those failures like the kind of negligence a private party would face.

Concrete Examples

A decision to change the bus route because of budget cuts is typically discretionary and may be protected.
Failing to follow a written safety checklist for securing children before the bus moves is a ministerial failure and likely not immune.

Important Statutory Exception for Sexual Assault

New Jersey removed immunity for claims arising from sexual assault and related crimes in certain circumstances. The statute expressly says immunity shall not apply where a public entity’s negligent hiring, supervision, or retention led to sexual abuse of a minor. If an injury arises from that type of conduct, the district cannot hide behind blanket immunity.

What Are the First Steps to Protect Your Child’s Claim From Home?

Document Everything You Remember

Your memory is a valuable source of information. Write down every detail you recall about the moments before and after you learned of the accident. What did school officials tell you? What was their timeline of events? What did your child say happened, in their own words? Who was on the scene when you arrived? No detail is too small, as it may become relevant later.

Create a File for All Paperwork

From this point forward, you will accumulate a significant amount of documentation. Keep all medical records, bills, receipts for travel to and from appointments, and any correspondence from the school or insurance companies in a single, organized file. This file becomes the financial backbone of your claim, providing tangible proof of your expenses.

Keep a Journal of Your Child’s Recovery

This is one of the most powerful tools you have. Track your child’s physical pain, emotional state, and any changes in their daily life. Note all doctor’s appointments, new symptoms, sleepless nights, or school activities they no longer participate in. This journal helps demonstrate the full, human impact of their injuries in a way that medical bills alone cannot.

Be Careful When Speaking with an Insurance Adjuster

An adjuster from the school’s or another driver’s insurance company may contact you. They are a business, which means they must balance paying out claims with their company’s financial interests. You are not required to give a recorded statement, and it is usually in your best interest not to.

We recommend directing them to your legal representative, who will handle all communications. This ensures your words are not misinterpreted or used to diminish the claim later.

Understand the New Jersey Tort Claims Act

This is the most pressing deadline you face. In New Jersey, if you intend to file a claim against a public entity like a school district, you must file a formal Notice of Claim within 90 days of the accident.

This is a mandatory prerequisite to filing a lawsuit. Missing this deadline prevents you from ever being able to recover compensation from that government entity, regardless of the severity of your child’s injury.

What Compensation Is Available for My Child’s Injuries?

The goal of a personal injury claim is to secure financial resources that cover every aspect of your child’s recovery, both now and for as long as they need care in the future. “Damages” is the legal term for the financial compensation sought to cover the losses from an injury.

We categorize them into two main types.

Economic Damages

These are the direct and verifiable financial costs associated with the accident. They have a clear dollar amount and are calculated by adding up existing bills and working with financial and medical planners to project future expenses.

This includes:

Current and Future Medical Expenses: This covers everything from the initial emergency room visit and hospital stay to ongoing physical therapy, counseling for emotional trauma, or any future surgeries that doctors anticipate may be necessary.
Out-of-Pocket Costs: Compensation is available for all related expenses, such as transportation to medical appointments, home modifications to accommodate a disability, and the cost of prescribed medical equipment.
Loss of Future Earning Capacity: If the injury is severe and will affect your child’s ability to work and earn an income as an adult, we pursue compensation for that potential lost income. This calculation is complicated and requires the input of economic professionals.

Non-Economic Damages

These losses are not tied to a specific bill, but they represent the real, human cost of the injury. They are just as significant as the financial costs.

Pain and Suffering: This compensates a child for the physical pain they have endured and will continue to endure. The law recognizes that this suffering has value that deserves to be compensated.
Emotional Distress: This includes compensation for the fear, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and other psychological harm stemming from a traumatic event like a bus crash. Children are particularly vulnerable to this type of harm.
Loss of Enjoyment of Life: If the injury prevents your child from participating in sports, hobbies, or simple childhood activities they once loved, compensation is available for this loss.

How Are Settlements for a Child Approved in New Jersey? What Role Do Parents and the Court Play?

When a settlement is reached for an injured child, New Jersey requires court involvement to make sure the settlement is fair and that the child’s money is protected for the future.

The Basic Steps

Guardian ad litem or guardian of the estate: In most cases a guardian ad litem is appointed to represent the child’s interests in the lawsuit. That person reviews the proposed settlement and reports to the court.
Petition to compromise (the “minor’s comp”): The child’s lawyer files a Petition to Compromise the Minor’s Claim and asks the court to approve the settlement. The petition must disclose the injury, medical treatment, attorney fees, liens, and how the net recovery will be handled.
Friendly hearing under Rule 4:44: The court holds a non-adversarial hearing, commonly called a “friendly hearing,” to review medical records, any medical affidavits, the guardian ad litem’s recommendations, and financial arrangements. The judge asks whether the settlement amount and distribution protect the minor’s long-term needs. If the judge approves, the court signs an order.

Who Controls the Money After Approval?

When the judge approves the settlement, the court ordinarily orders the funds placed into a protected account: either the Surrogate’s Intermingled Trust Fund (SITF) or a structured settlement/annuity. Withdrawals require a later court order, or the funds are released when the child reaches majority. This protects the money from being spent prematurely or lost to creditors.

What Parents Should Know About Their Role

You must be served with notice of the petition, even if you are the settling parent. Both natural parents should be notified so the court can consider their views. Failure to serve necessary parties can delay approval.
If the child is 14 or older, the court usually wants the child’s affidavit or testimony saying they consent to the settlement and understand its terms. This protects the child’s autonomy where age-appropriate.
The court reviews attorney fees and liens carefully. The judge will subtract reasonable legal fees, outstanding medical liens, and other authorized expenses before calculating the net sum to be protected for the child. Expect documentation and, in some cases, medical testimony to justify the award.

Frequently Asked Questions About School Bus Accidents in New Jersey

What if my child says they were partly at fault for their injury?

Children sometimes blame themselves, but their actions rarely affect their legal rights as a passenger. The school bus driver and the school district have a high duty of care to ensure the safety of all children on the bus. This responsibility accounts for the fact that children are active and boisterous. Their focus is on ensuring a safe environment, regardless of typical childhood behavior.

Am I able to still file a claim if I signed a permission slip or waiver from the school?

Yes. A permission slip for a field trip or other activity generally does not waive your child’s right to be safe from another party’s negligence. A school is not permitted to use a standard waiver to escape its fundamental responsibility for failing to provide a safe environment or for the negligent actions of its employees.

The school district’s insurance offered a quick settlement. Should I take it?

We advise you not to accept an early offer without speaking to an attorney. Initial settlement offers are frequently too low and may not account for the full scope of your child’s injuries, especially long-term medical care, future pain, and emotional suffering they may experience as they grow.

How long will a school bus accident lawsuit take in New Jersey?

The timeline for a school bus accident claim varies depending on the difficulty of the case. Some cases settle in a matter of months through negotiation, while others that involve multiple defendants or require a trial may take a year or more to resolve. Our goal is to resolve your case as efficiently as possible while ensuring the compensation you receive is full and fair.

Protect Your Child, Protect Their Future

You may be hearing that suing a school is difficult or that it’s impossible to hold a government entity accountable. That is not the full story.

The law provides a clear path for seeking justice, but it requires deliberate and timely action.

Let us handle the legal process while you focus on what matters most—your child. We will explain your rights and review the details of the accident with no obligation.

Call Maggiano, DiGirolamo & Lizzi, P.C. today for a free consultation at (201) 585-9111.