LL-01: Munn v. Hotchkiss School
USD 41.5M Verdict · Global · USA → China · 2007 / verdict 2015
What Happened
Cara Munn, 15, at The Hotchkiss School in Connecticut contracted tick-borne encephalitis during a school trip to China in 2007, resulting in permanent brain damage including the loss of speech and motor function. A Connecticut jury found the school negligent for failing to adequately warn students and parents about tick-borne illness risks for the specific region visited.
Outcome
USD 41.5 million jury verdict — one of the largest school trip negligence verdicts in US legal history
Quality Gaps Identified
- The school and trip provider failed to identify tick-borne encephalitis as a material risk for the specific region visited in China
- Parents and students were not warned about the risk despite it being documented in standard travel health guidance for that region
- The TBE vaccine exists and is recommended for travel to affected areas — failure to advise on this was central to the negligence finding
- Pre-departure health briefing was generic rather than destination-specific
TripTrust Quality Indicator Analysis
QI 7d requires providers to produce a destination-specific health risk document — including vaccination recommendations and disease risks by region and season — shared with schools and parents before departure. This directly addresses the failure that generated the largest school trip negligence verdict in US history.
Quality Indicators Referenced
QI 7d QI 7a QI 7b