Where do people come up with this.

[BlueStarLizzard]

Y'all are just a mess. 

You must confess,
We are lovable,
Even under duress.

[T.O.M.]

Back to teh subject at hand, instead of the pending Dr. Seuss-fest...

The real problem with this, and much of the legal system in general, is when people started taking the easy way out...

Someone sues you for doing wrong, so instead of defending yourself, you throw money at the problem to make it go away.  Some smort but shady lawyers saw this trend and jumped on it, and thus the ambulance chaser was born... "For only 1/3 of what you collect, I'll sue anyone for anything."  SWMBO works in the insurance industry, and some of the lawsuits she sees are incredible.  The goal of the lawyer is a quick settlement from the insurance company.  It's even gotten to the point now where lawyers will claim negligence for intentional acts, just to bring in the insurance companies and their mopney.  This is something we armed citizens need to be concerned about. (Shoot an interuder, and the intruder or his family will sue you for negligence, even if you did it intentionally.

And, it's spread to the criminal system, too, with plea bargaining. 

IMHO, the system needs to get back to the truth, and not the resolution.  Yes, it will tie up the system for a while, but it will get better after a while.

[Perd Hapley]

Back to teh subject at hand, instead of the pending Dr. Seuss-fest...

No more rhymes now. I mean it!

[makattak]

No more rhymes now. I mean it!

<...fighting it..... can't resist...>

Anybody want a peanut?

[Tallpine]

Are there rocks ahead ?

[Doggy Daddy]

Are there rocks ahead ?

If there were, you shoulda seen it.

[seeker_two]

Are there rocks ahead ?

If there are, we'll be dead.

[Phyphor]

Now now, no need to stress.....

[AmbulanceDriver]

You keep using that word.  I do not think it means what you think it means....

[AmbulanceDriver]

On to the OP (besides, what's APS without the mandatory thread drift) -

Stupid should hurt.  

Frankly, I think this case should be dismissed with prejudice - with a statement from the judge somewhere along the lines of "just because you do something stupid doesn't mean you get a payday."

I don't know how many times I got a minor burn from hot metal slides.  Guess what - I learned to check to see if a metal slide was hot before plopping my butt down.  And now instead, we have plastic slides that get almost as hot in the sun.

When I was young (toddler age), I kept trying to touch a light bulb.  My dad kept stopping me.   And I kept trying.   Eventually, he realized I wasn't gonna learn this lesson the easy way, so he let me touch it.   And he immediately then carried me into the bathroom and ran cold water over my singed fingers....   Guess what - I never touched a lit bulb again.

One time as a teenager, I was walking through the local mall.  At the time they had a small fountain in the middle of the food court area, and some water had splashed out - some kid had been playing over there.   I didn't see it, and slipped and biffed it.   Not really hurt (more than my pride and my butt) but I had three people come running up to me telling me they saw the whole thing and how the mall was liable for not wiping  up the floor the instant some kid splashed water out of the fountain or at least putting up "Wet  Floor" signs.   The first person I said I was fine, the second a "no really, I'm fine".   The third got a "are you stupid?  It was my own fault for not watching where I was going and stepping in a puddle!"  (which, btw, was pretty obvious had I just been looking)

Instead (as others have posted) the quick settlement/throw some money at the problem solution has come into play, and now there's this new trend we see today.

[Tallpine]

I sat on a bench, some time to pass,
The seat was hot and I burnt my ass.

And though it's nothing but a bit sore,
Why should I go through life poor?

 

[MechAg94]

Back to teh subject at hand, instead of the pending Dr. Seuss-fest...

The real problem with this, and much of the legal system in general, is when people started taking the easy way out...

Someone sues you for doing wrong, so instead of defending yourself, you throw money at the problem to make it go away.  Some smort but shady lawyers saw this trend and jumped on it, and thus the ambulance chaser was born... "For only 1/3 of what you collect, I'll sue anyone for anything."  SWMBO works in the insurance industry, and some of the lawsuits she sees are incredible.  The goal of the lawyer is a quick settlement from the insurance company.  It's even gotten to the point now where lawyers will claim negligence for intentional acts, just to bring in the insurance companies and their mopney.  This is something we armed citizens need to be concerned about. (Shoot an interuder, and the intruder or his family will sue you for negligence, even if you did it intentionally.

And, it's spread to the criminal system, too, with plea bargaining. 

IMHO, the system needs to get back to the truth, and not the resolution.  Yes, it will tie up the system for a while, but it will get better after a while.

The question in my mind is what can be done legally to change that?

Make it illegal for lawyers or anyone with a law degree to run for political office (except the court system).  Don't know if that would work.

[Hawkmoon]

Climbing a cliff takes a lot of... hope.

And a rope

[vaskidmark]

The question in my mind is what can be done legally to change that?

Make it illegal for lawyers or anyone with a law degree to run for political office (except the court system).  Don't know if that would work.

Barratry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barratry is already illegal.  But maybe if we made it double super-secret illegal?

And I'm not sure I want an attorney at the head of the judicial system.  From SCOTUS on down it does not seem to have done any real good to have actual trial practice.

stay safe.

[makattak]

Barratry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barratry is already illegal.  But maybe if we made it double super-secret illegal?

And I'm not sure I want an attorney at the head of the judicial system.  From SCOTUS on down it does not seem to have done any real good to have actual trial practice.

stay safe.

I think the same principle should apply to the legal system that applies to civilian control of the military.

Related to that, I also think we shouldn't be electing lawyers to political office. It is in their best interest to write (1) laws that only other lawyers can understand and (2) more and more laws so that people/corporations have to hire lawyers just to keep track of them.

[MillCreek]

The question in my mind is what can be done legally to change that?

Speaking as someone who has worked in the civil liability system for almost 30 years now, it is pretty entrenched as part of the Constitutional system of the right to a trial by jury for civil disputes, going back to the Seventh Amendment of the US Constitution and in most state constitutions.  Clearly, there are some aspects which could bear with some tinkering, but I don't think anyone here wants to give up the right to seek redress in court for someone or something That Done You Wrong.  The American propensity to sue is probably due more to cultural issues than solely as a function of our legal system. 

[T.O.M.]

The question in my mind is what can be done legally to change that?

Options:
1.  Outlaw contingency fees.  Most of these crap cases are filed with a fee agreement granting the lawyer 30%-50% of any settlement or judgment.  Make the client pay something to start, and you'll see a lot of these cases go away.  As it is now, all people see in the fee agreement is "I'll get 50%-70% and have to do nothing."  You have lawyers advertising "I don't get paid unless you get paid."  That's just chumming the waters in our entitlement culture...
2.  Prohibit direct attorny solicitation of clients.  I know that this is treading on First Amendment issues, but allowing lawyers to send letters to people who were injured only encourages crap lawsuits.  I was involved in a minor car crash a few years back...I got hit from behind by a man who screwed up, and admitted he screwed up from the first moment out of the car.  No injuries, minor vehicle damage that insurance covered with no argument.  I got at least a dozen letters from attrneys offering services to sue the guy, all with the same "I don't get paid unless you get paid" kind of offer.  And, my friend who was in the car with me also got letters, including offers to sue me for my negligence.  He called one attorney for fun (he's like that) and the guy basically admitted it was to get cash from my insurance company.  More chum in the waters...
3.  Insurance companies need to take a stand on some of these cases.  I hate to say it, but with the economy hurting as it is, more insurance companies are doing this because they are hiring people to do a lot of the lawyer work in-house.  This cuts their costs, so they have less motivation to settle.  My wife is a liability specialist, who evaluates cases to determine if there is coverage and/or liability in any case before an attorney is even consulted.
4.  I hate to say this, but tort reform is worth discussing.  Punitive damages have gotten out of control, and the press about these awards (like teh McDonald's case) is just more chum in teh water...

[AmbulanceDriver]

I know it has its problems, but I think a "loser pays" system would go a long way towards eliminating these "quick settlement" type of lawsuits.   

[MrsSmith]

Maybe, AD, but maybe not. There are some real instances when lawsuits are useful. But if you're outgunned by corporate attorneys, then you'd be screwed. Example: trying to sue an insurance company. I really think the threat of litigation is the only thing that keeps them somewhat honest. Take that away and we're all screwed.

[AmbulanceDriver]

And that would be one of the problems...