I can't speak to the liability issue, but I have seen hard-sided ski travel cases in my local ski store. Compared to the cost of good skis, these are pretty reasonably priced - something like this at $79.95 is a fraction of the cost of a good pair of skis.

I haven't used them, so I don't know how well they work, but common sense suggests they are better than the soft-sided carriers as far as offering some measure of protection.