Opinion ID: 76867
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Heading: The Informed Consent Document

Text: 9 Before T.J. could use the YWCA pool, he was required to sign the Informed Consent Document. That document contained an exculpatory clause in which T.J. agreed to assume the risk of injury during YWCA exercise programs and to hold the YWCA harmless from any suits for injury or death. Daniel argues that this document did not have a proper disclaimer of liability or assumption of the risk clause and only applied to fitness programs conducted by the YWCA. 10 In Georgia, a party may exempt itself from its own simple negligence through exculpatory clauses as long as the clause is not void as against public policy. Hall v. Gardens Servs., Inc., 174 Ga.App. 856, 332 S.E.2d 3, 5 (1985); accord Lovelace v. Figure Salon, Inc., 179 Ga.App. 51, 345 S.E.2d 139, 140-41 (1986). Exculpatory clauses in fitness club contracts are generally not void as against public policy, see Hembree v. Johnson, 224 Ga.App. 680, 482 S.E.2d 407, 409 (1997); however, they must be clear and unambiguous. Dep't of Transp. v. Arapaho Constr., Inc., 257 Ga. 269, 357 S.E.2d 593, 594 (1987) (punctuation omitted). Any ambiguity will be interpreted against the drafter. See id. 11 The Georgia Court of Appeals has upheld exculpatory clauses that disclaim a party's negligence when they contain (1) a covenant not to sue, (2) a disclaimer of liability, and (3) an assumption of risk clause. 4 See My Fair Lady of Georgia, Inc. v. Harris, 185 Ga.App. 459, 364 S.E.2d 580, 581 (1987); Lovelace, 345 S.E.2d at 141. Daniel contends that although the Informed Consent Document at issue here has a valid covenant not to sue, it lacks a sufficient liability disclaimer and assumption of the risk clause and thus fails to apply to the facts of this case. 12 Specifically, Daniel cites to Batson-Cook Co. v. Georgia Marble Setting Co., 112 Ga.App. 226, 144 S.E.2d 547, 550 (1965) for the proposition that negligence must be expressly mentioned in order to have a valid liability disclaimer, and without it the Informed Consent Document only releases the YWCA from claims asserted by third parties. We, however, do not agree with Daniel's reasoning. Although Batson-Cook scrutinizes exculpatory clauses in indemnity agreements for the intent to hold the indemnitor liable for the negligent acts of the indemnitee, see id., subsequent decisions of the Georgia Court of Appeals clarify that an exculpatory clause does not need to expressly use the word `negligence' in order to bar a negligence claim. Neighborhood Assistance Corp. v. Dixon, 265 Ga.App. 255, 593 S.E.2d 717, 718 (2004). In fact, the Georgia Court of Appeals has stated that a party's release from any and all liabilities, claims, or lawsuits will bar the opponent's negligence claims. McClesky v. Vericon Res., Inc., 264 Ga.App. 31, 589 S.E.2d 854, 855, 856 (2003); see also Flanigan v. Executive Office Ctrs., Inc., 249 Ga.App. 14, 546 S.E.2d 559, 560, 561 (2001) (validating the liability disclaimer that states, [t]he client expressly agrees to waive, and agrees not to make any claim for damages). Here, T.J. agree[d] to hold harmless the YWCA and its staff members ... from any and all claims, suits, losses, or related causes of action for damages, including, but not limited to, such claims that may result from [his] injury or death, accidental or otherwise, during, or arising in any way from, the exercise program. R1-25 Exh. A. This phrase is virtually identical to the exculpatory language approved of in McClesky and Flanigan; thus, we see no reason why this clause would not be a valid liability disclaimer under Georgia law. 13 Furthermore, Daniel argues that the assumption of risk clause is inadequate because T.J. only assume[d] the risk of [his] exercise and not the risk of using the facilities, as in the Harris and Lovelace cases. See Harris, 364 S.E.2d at 580; Lovelace, 345 S.E.2d at 140. Moreover, Daniel argues that the Informed Consent Document should specifically list every risk T.J. faced while at the YWCA, including: the risk lifeguards will leave their posts to conduct maintenance duties, the risk lifeguards will disregard their surveillance duties, and the risk that management will fail to supervise the lifeguards. Again, we do not agree with Daniel's contentions. Considering the entire Informed Consent Document as we must, see Arapaho, 357 S.E.2d at 595, T.J. agreed to assume the risk for any injury [he] might suffer in an exercise program conducted at the YWCA.  R1-25 Exh. A (emphasis added). Additionally, T.J. agreed to hold the YWCA and its staff members, including lifeguards, harmless from any lawsuits for his death, be it accidental or otherwise. We see no reason why such language should not be considered a sufficient assumption of risk by T.J. Although previous cases use slightly different language, there is no indication Georgia law requires specific language as to each risk assumed during an exercise routine at a fitness club. 14 Finally, Daniel argues that the Informed Consent Document only concerns exercise programs conducted by the YWCA and not exercise conducted by the individual separately. While the Informed Consent Document does cover exercise programs conducted by the YWCA, its language broadly covers all exercise programs conducted at the YWCA whether they are self-guided programs or formal programs the YWCA provides. R1-25 Exh. A. When T.J. signed the Informed Consent Document, it was apparent that he intended to perform a self-guided exercise program to prepare himself for SRS training. Again reading the contract as a whole, T.J. was well aware that his exercise program at the YWCA could cause injury or death, and he knew that by signing the Informed Consent Document he could not hold the YWCA liable. 15 Thus, the Informed Consent Document was a valid exculpatory agreement that waived the YWCA's liability for acts of simple negligence but not gross negligence. We must now determine whether the grant of summary judgment was proper on the issue of gross negligence.