Today I concluded my quest for a replacement hub cap for my 1998 Chevy Malibu. It broke awhile ago and I finally found a place that had one for a decent price. Dave down at A and H Truck and Auto Parts was more than happy to sell me what I needed.
After a quick drive down by the railroad tracks in the Menomenee River Valley, I found the office of the salvage yard attached to the back of what looked like a silo of some type. It was clean inside and Dave had what I needed ready and was more than happy to chat with me while my credit card was charged for the hub cap. However, his mood changed significantly when I asked if I could barrow his wrench to fasten the hub cap on, “I would really like to give it to you and come help but… I can’t, our owner won’t let us help anyone after we let a customer change their tire in our lot and he sued us because he knocked over his own jack”. If I had a dime every time an American is unable to help or participate in something due to our litigious culture…
The cost of lawsuit abuse is not limited to good, hardworking citizens being restricted from reaching out to help eachother, it has direct fiscal consequences as well:
With the rise of civil lawsuits over the last half a century, each American citizen is now estimated to pay a “lawsuit tax” of anywhere between $700 and $800 a year (27 September 2004 US Fed News). According to Secretary of Commerce Don Evans, if you take the total cost of tort claims and judgments in the United States and divide it by the number of citizens in the country, a tort tax of about $809 per capita results (15 December 2004 White House Press Releases And Documents).
I can use my own lug wrench however, we can help to decrease the burden of the frivilous American tort extravaganza. SickOfLawsuits.org has a easy way to contact your legislators about lawsuit reform, they will even provide you with an activist’s toolkit. Need more convincing? Check out LegalZoom’s Top Ten Frivolous Lawsuits.
So to answer the question I posed, is the Good Samaritan dead in America? No, he is just tied up by lawyers.
Last 5 posts by Brandon- Public Option at Work: Canadian Premier Comes to US for healthcare - February 2nd, 2010
- Meaningless Government Metrics: Jobs Created and GDP - January 11th, 2010
- Wednesday Hero: Army Master Sgt. C. J. Grisham - December 16th, 2009
- Free Marketers Give Legislators Pink Slips for Smaller Government Tomorrow - November 21st, 2009
- Senate Healthcare Bill: 392 Mentions of taxes and regulations - November 20th, 2009
Define a frivolous lawsuit that is successful. By definition, one that is frivolous never makes it past summary judgment. I don’t think you have enough of a grasp on the law to start saying there needs to be reform. Perhaps the guy at A and H didn’t give you all the facts on why they were sued.
“In September 1988, two Akron, Ohio-based carpet layers named Gordon Falker and Gregory Roach were severely burned when a three and a half gallon container of carpet adhesive ignited when the hot water heater it was sitting next to kicked on. Both men felt the warning label on the back of the can was insufficient. Words like “flammable†and “keep away from heat†didn’t prepare them for the explosion. They filed suit against the adhesive manufacturers, Para-Chem. A jury obviously agreed since the men were awarded $8 million for their troubles.”
There are tons more at any number of legal sites but I would start with http://www.sickoflawsuits.org if you need more examples.
here’s anecdotal evidence suggesting that the east coast isn’t filled with uptight snobs. while you found good samaritans mia in the friendly midwest, strangers on the unfriendly east coast go beyond the call of duty to help another man in need: http://news.wjla.com/news/stories/1206/381780.html
Tim strikes out…again
The vast majority of these “frivolous suit” email stories are blatantly made up. Neither the lawsuit nor the award ever happened. You should always check them out before passing them along. Very few suits make it to trial, and those that do are usually heard by a jury. When a jury awards high compensation, it is because the behavior of the defendant is indefensible. For example, exploding Pintos were predicted before their release, but the manufacturer decided that a few lives lost was cheaper than literally a few dollars in safety changes to the vehicles. Tell that to the guy who watched his wife and children literally burn to death in the backseat after a low speed collision. The only way this kind of information comes to light is if a lawyer is willing to spend his or her time and money to find this out. Because lawyers must put up their own money first, suits are much more limited than web sites and emails would have you believe.
Peple sit in my office and say they never thought they would need a lawyer, but they’re glad I’m there for them when they need me. It’s easy to bash lawyers until you need one, but at least get your actual facts straight before doing so.
lawya,
You are not a reliable source of legal information. You are too willing to lie to lead others to the end view you want. The above is as likely true as not but you lost any credibility as a legal source when you made claims about the marriage amendment that were discredited during the Marquette amendment debate. Among them were the false claim that people would not be protected from domestic abuse, when infact in Wisconsin domestic abuse laws are structured around anyone living in the same residence, be it roomate or whatever in total contrast to what you told us siting your posion as a lawyer. An anti-amendment lawyer acknowledged this point. There are other examples but this is a good example.
I think its important for anyone reading this blog to relize how unreliable you are before taking anything you post too seriously.
What was the result of the suit against the parts dealer? What was the cause stated in the suit?
How can you claim the suit was unjustified when you don’t have the facts?
I remember all those people who said that you should expect some risk around pools, so all those little girls who had their guts sucked out by the filtering systems should have known . . .