USC and a university professor, as well as a trapeze school, should all be dismissed as defendants in a former business student’s lawsuit in which she alleges she was severely injured performing a trapeze exercise required of her as an elective while working toward her MBA, defense attorneys argue in new court papers.
Jill Johnson’s Los Angeles Superior Court names as defendants USC, marketing professor Joseph Priester and the TSNY Los Angeles LLC. The complaint alleges premises liability, negligence and negligent hiring, retention, training and supervision.
But in court papers filed Wednesday and Thursday with Judge Steven A. Ellis, USC and TSNY lawyers argue that Johnson knew of the potential perils of the trapeze exercise and went forward with it anyway.
“In the instant matter, plaintiff suffered an injury arising from a risk inherent to the flying trapeze,” USC lawyers contend in their court papers. “Plaintiff assumed the risk of such an incident by voluntarily choosing to participate in the trapeze activity.”
Johnson also signed a document agreeing to assume all risks associated with the trapeze activity and “hold harmless” TSNY should she be injured, an issue she acknowledged in a pretrial deposition, the USC attorneys further argue in their court papers.
After a comprehensive safety assessment, the trapeze activity at the school near the Santa Monica Pier was officially approved by the administration department of the Marshall School of Business in 2007 and since then has been one of the off-campus activities included in the Fostering Creativity course, the USC lawyers further state in their court papers.
During the years, more than 1,200 students of varying weights and body shapes have participated in the activity, with only two minor injuries reported during that time, according to the USC lawyers’ pleadings.
Johnson never asked Priester if she could be excused from the(trapeze) activity or if she could engage in an alternative,” the USC attorneys further state in their court papers.
According to the suit originally filed in October 2023 and amended April 11, Johnson was a student at USC Marshall School of Business, working to obtain an MBA. She was required to take a number of elective units and enrolled in a course, “Fostering Creativity,” in which Priester, as part of the course curriculum, scheduled a group lesson at trapeze school, the suit alleges.
“The goal of this lesson was to help students find their edge and overcome their fears,” the suit states.
Priester did not say the trapeze lesson was optional, nor did he provide alternative activities that students could complete, according to the suit.
Johnson told the professor she was concerned about the school’s weight limit and whether she would be able to participate, but he replied, “You are in great shape, and the weight will not be an issue,” the suit states.
Priester knew that Johnson exceeded the 205-pound weight limit, but still encouraged her to participate, the suit states.
During the second of two exercises, Johnson swung forward, then back, then forward again and tucked her legs and landed on the net after completing the backflip, but she felt one leg crumple beneath her, she could not stand and she saw blood pouring out of her leg, according to the suit.
“What happened to our client is outrageous,” plaintiff’s attorney Shant Karnikian said previously. “No student should ever feel pressured to engage in an unsafe activity that could result in a devastating injury. USC must answer for its negligence in allowing such dangerous conditions to persist at its institution.”
USC owed Johnson an obligation to not expose her to unnecessary risk and to supervise and approve the curriculum of its professors, but she suffered severe physical and emotional injuries, incurred medical costs and experienced past and future lost earnings, the suit alleges.
Hearings on the USC and TSNY dismissal motions are scheduled for July 16 and 18, 2025, respectively.