Could the scuba guide company that took Rohina Bhandari out be liable? There are a lot of factors and one of the bigger issues is whether you can sue them in the United States. It is my understanding that this happened in Costa Rica. I would want to know how the ticket was purchased, whether the company operates in United States, and advertises in the United States. All of these can factor into whether you can bring an action against a company that is based in another country. All I know is that this happened in Costa Rica. I know nothing about Costa Rica law.
It’s also important to find out whether this company knew whether this was a dangerous place to scuba dive and whether they had increased the risk in some way by going during a particular time or doing something in the water that would promote a shark attack.
The company might try to argue that they had a release of liability. In California those releases do not cover gross negligence or reckless conduct. For example, I have gotten out of similar releases when I have proven that the defendant had acted recklessly or used gross negligence and endangered the life and safety of my client. A similar argument can be made in this case if they should not have taken her out to a location where sharks were likely to be feeding or increasing the likelihood of shark attack.
Some people would argue that this is her own fault but I disagree. If she had done it on her own and looked up how to swim with sharks and was basically on a suicide mission then the argument that she’s responsible for her death is stronger. When you hire a company to assist you, you expect the company to do it in a way that is safe and won’t needlessly and put your life in danger. For example when you go rock climbing with a guide, you expect the guide to use proper safety equipment and go during a time of year when it is safe to climb whatever it is you’re going to climb. If the guide decides to use cheap rope or equipment that is slightly broken and you were injured because of that, you have a cause of action against the guide even though you knew that climbing has risks involved. The risks you agree to undertake is not that the guide is going to do something stupid to endanger your life.
