Student Liability
To protect against liability claims, all research involving subject consent requires a statement informing potential subjects that their participation is not covered by university liability insurance. The subject consent form must include the following statement:
If injuries occur during the course of research, subjects are advised that the University of Northern Colorado is a publicly-funded institution of higher education and as such, liability may be limited under and governed by the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act.
The State of Colorado's Risk Management Division (the unit responsible for UNC's liability insurance) has concluded that student researchers are not protected by the state against claims unless they are student employees, interns, or authorized volunteers assigned to a research project (most student researchers would not be). This means that most graduate students working on their master's theses or doctoral dissertations are not protected by the state of Colorado against claims resulting from their research.
This decision has serious implications for student researchers who are working with human subjects. Any student researcher who is placing subjects at some level of risk should be concerned. For example, student researchers are engaged in a variety of activities that could potentially harm their subjects (e.g., they draw blood, conduct therapy sessions, evaluate physical conditioning). Regardless of how responsible researchers may be, accidents can happen. Though the researcher is ultimately responsible for the health and safety of research subjects, low risk research, as defined by Health and Human Services (HHS) Guidelines and described in the IRB instruction packet, may not be recommended for special liability insurance coverage.
For moderate to high risk procedures, the IRB committee will strongly recommend that student’s purchase liability insurance either through a professional association or an alternative source.