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A PRIMARY school teacher is taking the Ministry of Education (MOE) to court after she fractured her right ankle by jumping from a height of 3.7m to get out from her school premises.
The 38-year-old found herself locked in the school on a Saturday morning in Feb 2006, screamed for help for 30 minutes and then decided to leap to freedom.
She climbed over a ventilation gap between the first and second floors and jumped out onto a grass patch, but injured herself badly enough to need 100 days of medical leave.
As a result, she is suing the MOE, holding it indirectly liable for the school's alleged negligence and lack of duty of care.
Her case was one of more than 13,000 suits filed in the High Court in the first 11 months of last year.
The number of civil suits in the High Court has declined over the last three years, unlike in the Subordinate Courts, where it has soared over the same period.
The suits, which involve claims of over $250,000, vary from defamation and debt recovery to en bloc disputes and clashes over family wills.
Some, like the teacher's, are about negligence.
Her case will give the High Court an opportunity to explore who is liable if a worker is accidentally trapped in his own workplace and is subsequently injured.
A pre-trial hearing was held on Tuesday.
According to court documents, the teacher went to the school in Tiong Bahru on a Saturday morning to do some work in her classroom.
She was stranded when she realised the staff room had been locked with her bag and cellphone in it, leaving her unable to call for help, and all the exits were shuttered and closed.
The mother of two needed surgery after the incident and still has difficulty climbing staircases, squatting or standing for long. She also walks with a limp.
Through lawyer S. Perumal, she is seeking damages from the MOE, which oversees the school and is defended by the Attorney-General's Chambers.
The MOE is denying the claims, and argues that it was her own choice to go to school on a non-work day.
There is also a standard operating procedure for teachers to sign in, which she did not do, so no one knew she was on the premises.
The MOE also argues that she could have tried other routes, or raised the fire alarm.
Figures from the High Court show there were 13,414 cases filed up to November last year, compared to 13,637 cases in 2008 and 13,818 cases in 2007.
But in the Subordinate Courts, the figures have gone up by more than 10,000 cases over the last three years, from 32,724 in 2007, to about 38,500 in 2008 and 43,342 last year.
It is understood the increase could be a fallout of the economic downturn that began in late 2008 and left many seeking redress for deals that soured.
The first case filed in the High Court in the new year was by lawyers acting for a copper products company facing financial woes. It is seeking a court order for a scheme it is proposing on how to solve its difficulties and avoid being sued.
It is due to be heard next Monday.
The 38-year-old found herself locked in the school on a Saturday morning in Feb 2006, screamed for help for 30 minutes and then decided to leap to freedom.
She climbed over a ventilation gap between the first and second floors and jumped out onto a grass patch, but injured herself badly enough to need 100 days of medical leave.
As a result, she is suing the MOE, holding it indirectly liable for the school's alleged negligence and lack of duty of care.
Her case was one of more than 13,000 suits filed in the High Court in the first 11 months of last year.
The number of civil suits in the High Court has declined over the last three years, unlike in the Subordinate Courts, where it has soared over the same period.
The suits, which involve claims of over $250,000, vary from defamation and debt recovery to en bloc disputes and clashes over family wills.
Some, like the teacher's, are about negligence.
Her case will give the High Court an opportunity to explore who is liable if a worker is accidentally trapped in his own workplace and is subsequently injured.
A pre-trial hearing was held on Tuesday.
According to court documents, the teacher went to the school in Tiong Bahru on a Saturday morning to do some work in her classroom.
She was stranded when she realised the staff room had been locked with her bag and cellphone in it, leaving her unable to call for help, and all the exits were shuttered and closed.
The mother of two needed surgery after the incident and still has difficulty climbing staircases, squatting or standing for long. She also walks with a limp.
Through lawyer S. Perumal, she is seeking damages from the MOE, which oversees the school and is defended by the Attorney-General's Chambers.
The MOE is denying the claims, and argues that it was her own choice to go to school on a non-work day.
There is also a standard operating procedure for teachers to sign in, which she did not do, so no one knew she was on the premises.
The MOE also argues that she could have tried other routes, or raised the fire alarm.
Figures from the High Court show there were 13,414 cases filed up to November last year, compared to 13,637 cases in 2008 and 13,818 cases in 2007.
But in the Subordinate Courts, the figures have gone up by more than 10,000 cases over the last three years, from 32,724 in 2007, to about 38,500 in 2008 and 43,342 last year.
It is understood the increase could be a fallout of the economic downturn that began in late 2008 and left many seeking redress for deals that soured.
The first case filed in the High Court in the new year was by lawyers acting for a copper products company facing financial woes. It is seeking a court order for a scheme it is proposing on how to solve its difficulties and avoid being sued.
It is due to be heard next Monday.
