the modern day fire service Research Essay

Fire Chiefs and Legal Requirements

Fire Chiefs in the modern fire service must deal with a wide range of issues that make managing emergency response services a difficult job. Legal requirements are arguably one of those obstacles that is most important. It is essential for Fire Departments to carry out their operations in accordance with both national standards and the law in a society that is highly legalistic and where negative news and lawsuits are frequent.

Litigation and its Implications

Litigation can be disastrous for both fire departments and the people who work in them. These divisions and their staff are required to fulfill a number of obligations, not the least of which is that they must adhere to quality standards or face legal action. (Bennett, 2008). Article V of the Public Law posits that any licensed individual who meets the professional qualifications and provides assistance when requested by a receiving state is considered licensed to render aid by that state (Public Law 104-321). Hence, the paramedic being out-of-state is immaterial as long as he or she is qualified. Such an individual would be considered a volunteer, which would entitle him to protection under the Good Samaritan doctrine (Bennett, 2008). As such, the person is immune from any personal liability for damage or injury as long as it was not caused by willful, wanton or reckless misconduct.

The Role of Officers and Liability

According to Article VI of the Public Law, officers under the employment of a party state who provide services in another state are perceived as agents of the requesting state, which is liable for both immunity and tort liability purposes (Public Law 104-321). Such officers are thus not liable for any acts or omissions they engage in in the course of duty as long as these occur in good faith. If permission to participate in the response came from the incident commander, then the paramedic would become an agent of the requesting state. Since the applicant state incurs all liability, neither the incident commander nor the paramedic’s home municipality would be liable.

References

Bennett, L. T. (2008). Fire Service Law. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Public Law 104–321. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-104publ321/pdf/PLAW-104publ321.pdf