Bullying Law

The State of California recognizes all bullying as a form of violence that involves a real or perceived imbalance of power between individuals or groups of children and results in unprovoked, intentional, and usually repeated physical, verbal, or emotional abuse. While bullying takes on many different forms, each one can be just as detrimental to a child’s development as the next, and all children should have the right to be free of bullying and processing the aftermath if need be.

If you are a student or the parent of a student who has been getting bullied while at school, then you may be entitled to pursue multiple forms of legal recourse. Our team at Masry Law Firm is dedicated to helping you navigate your options and the following litigation.

The State of California recognizes all bullying as a form of violence that involves a real or perceived imbalance of power between individuals or groups of children and results in unprovoked, intentional, and usually repeated physical, verbal, or emotional abuse. While bullying takes on many different forms, each one can be just as detrimental to a child’s development as the next, and all children should have the right to be free of bullying and processing the aftermath if need be.

If you are a student or the parent of a student who has been getting bullied while at school, then you may be entitled to pursue multiple forms of legal recourse. Our team at Masry Law Firm is dedicated to helping you navigate your options and the following litigation.

What Laws Prevent Bullying?

Amendments to California’s existing Safe Place to Learn Act and Interagency School Safety Demonstration Act became effective on Jan. 1, 2019 and required all local educational agencies to adopt procedures for preventing acts of bullying, including cyberbullying, by the end of 2019. All 50 states have anti-bullying laws, which often have the strongest protections for students. They can also help put an immediate stop to the bullying.

In most cases, state anti-bullying laws require the school to report, document, and investigate any bullying incident within a specific number of days. The law also requires the school to take some kind of action in order to stop the behavior from continuing. Sometimes states will have a concrete list of consequences for bullies, while others might have processes for offering services such as counseling to the victim and the bully.

Cyberbullying vs Traditional Bullying

Cyberbullying has also become increasingly common over the last decade, and can have tragic, sometimes even fatal consequences. As such, all schools and other institutions caring for kids are required to adhere to strict guidelines when it comes to physical and digital altercations between children. Violations of these policies are reprehensible and reprimandable.

Cyberbullying includes sending, posting, or sharing negative, harmful, false, or mean content about someone else through digital channels. It can include sharing personal or private information about someone else causing embarrassment or humiliation. Some cyberbullying crosses the line into unlawful or criminal behavior.

Bullying can take on various different forms and inflict varying levels of lasting damage in the victims. As of now, there are four specifically defined forms of bullying, including:

1. Physical bullying

2. Verbal bullying

3. Relational bullying

4. Cyber bullying

While inherently different from one another, each type of bullying can have very similar aftermath and consequences. Not the least of which are physical injuries, depression, anxiety, and in increasingly more cases, suicide.