The Law

This section of the resource represents the views of ANZSLA — the sports law association, Tony O’Reilly of Minter Ellison Lawyers, the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, and the federal Attorney-General’s Department.

As more pregnant Australian women are beginning or continuing to be active during their pregnancies, some legal considerations are coming to light. So far, there have been no cases reported in Australia where an organisation or another participant has been sued by a mother or a baby for injuries caused during sporting activity. However, rising insurance premiums and sporting organisations’ improved understanding of their responsibilities for the safety of participants in their care have now increased awareness of the likelihood of legal action in sporting situations.

Since conflicts can arise between the legal right of pregnant women to participate in sport and the risks of participating, sports administrators must ensure that their organisation meets its legal and insurance obligations, and its obligations to avoid discriminating against pregnant women who wish to participate. If an organisation attempts to exclude a woman from its facilities because she is pregnant, it may be found to have unlawfully discriminated against her. If an organisation could be seen as not having taken all reasonable steps to prevent a pregnant woman from being injured, it could be found liable (that is, responsible and under a legal obligation), and could be sued. As each pregnancy is different, and each sport is different, sporting organisations should seek professional legal advice regarding the way their particular sport should deal with these issues.

The two main areas of the law that are affected by the increasing participation of pregnant women are negligence (including what is known as liability) and discrimination.

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Important information - This publication is intended as an information source for the Australian sporting industry, its administrators, coaches, officials and other staff, employed or voluntary. It is not intended as, nor is it suitable to be used as, advice to sports participants. Pregnancy in sport is essentially a medical issue, and it is therefore vital that pregnant women who wish to participate in sport obtain medical advice before doing so.

Disclaimer - The issues discussed in this publication can be complex, and resolutions will vary from person to person and jurisdiction to jurisdiction. This document should not be considered a substitute for professional legal or medical advice. While care has been taken in the preparation of this material, the writer and publisher do not accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, nor for the result of actions taken on the basis of this information.

This is an archive copy of a web document originally located at http://www.ausport.gov.au/asc/corpdocs/pregnancy.htm published by the Australian Sports Commission All copyright remains with the creator.

The National Sport Information Centre Web Archive provides access to archive copies of materials in electronic forms. There is no inference that these materials necessarily reflect the current policy of any of the institutions or agencies that created them.