Defense of Charitable Immunity Abolished; and Qualified Immunity for Volunteers.
§ 1-539.9. Defense abolished as to actions arising after September 1, 1967.
The common-law defense of charitable immunity is abolished and shall not constitute a valid defense to any action or cause of action arising subsequent to September 1, 1967. (1967, c. 856.)
§ 1-539.10. Immunity from civil liability for volunteers.
(a) A volunteer who performs services for a charitable organization or a volunteer engaged in providing emergency services is not liable in civil damages for any acts or omissions resulting in any injury, death, or loss to person or property arising from the volunteer services rendered if:
(1) The volunteer was acting in good faith and the services rendered were reasonable under the circumstances; and
(2) The acts or omissions do not amount to gross negligence, wanton conduct, or intentional wrongdoing.
(3) The acts or omissions did not occur while the volunteer was operating or responsible for the operation of a motor vehicle.
(b) To the extent that any charitable organization or volunteer has liability insurance, that charitable organization or volunteer shall be deemed to have waived the qualified immunity herein to the extent of indemnification by insurance for the negligence by any volunteer.
(c) Nothing herein shall be construed to alter the standard of care requirement or liability of persons rendering professional services. (1987, c. 505, s. 1(2); 2005-273, s. 1.)
§ 1-539.11. Definitions.
As used in this Article:
(1) "Charitable Organization" means an organization that has humane and philanthropic objectives, whose activities benefit humanity or a significant rather than limited segment of the community without expectation of pecuniary profit or reward and is exempt from taxation under either G.S. 105-130.11(a)(3) or G.S. 105-130.11(a)(5) or Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.
(1a) "Emergency services" means the preparation for and the carrying out of functions to prevent, minimize, and repair injury and damage resulting from natural or man-made disasters and all other activities necessary or incidental to the preparation for and carrying out of these functions. These functions include firefighting services, police services, medical and health services, rescue services, engineering services, land surveying services, warning services and communications, radiological, chemical and other special weapons defense services, evacuation of persons from stricken areas, emergency welfare services, including providing emergency shelter, emergency transportation, and emergency resource management services, existing or properly assigned plant protection services, temporary restoration of public utility services, services performed as a function of a Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) unit or a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), and other functions related to civilian protection, including the administration of approved State and federal disaster recovery and assistance programs.
(2) "Volunteer" means an individual, serving as a direct service volunteer performing services for a charitable, nonprofit organization, who does not receive compensation, or anything of value in lieu of compensation, for the services, other than reimbursement for expenses actually incurred or any person providing emergency services without any financial gain. (1987, c. 505, s. 1(2); 2005-273, s. 2.)
§ 1-539.12. Immunity from civil liability for employers disclosing information.
(a) An employer who discloses information about a current or former employee's job history or job performance to a prospective employer of the current or former employee upon request of the prospective employer or upon request of the current or former employee is immune from civil liability and is not liable in civil damages for the disclosure or any consequences of the disclosure. This immunity shall not apply when a claimant shows by a preponderance of the evidence both of the following:
(1) The information disclosed by the current or former employer was false.
(2) The employer providing the information knew or reasonably should have known that the information was false.
(b) For purposes of this section, "job performance" includes:
(1) The suitability of the employee for re-employment;
(2) The employee's skills, abilities, and traits as they may relate to suitability for future employment; and
(3) In the case of a former employee, the reason for the employee's separation.
(c) The provisions of this section apply to any employee, agent, or other representative of the current or former employer who is authorized to provide and who provides information in accordance with the provisions of this section. For the purposes of this section, "employer" also includes a job placement service but does not include a private personnel service as defined in G.S. 95-47.1 except as provided hereinafter. The provisions of this section apply to a private personnel service as defined in G.S. 95-47.1 only to the extent that the service conveys information derived from credit reports, court records, educational records, and information furnished to it by the employee or prior employers and the service identifies the source of the information.
(d) This section does not affect any privileges or immunities from civil liability established by another section of the General Statutes or available at common law. (1997-478, s. 1; 2021-82, s. 4(b).)
§ 1-539.13: Reserved for future codification purposes.
§ 1-539.14: Reserved for future codification purposes.