Nobody likes a lawyer til they need one

For some friends who were in on an email conversation today, part of this will be a repeat. Forgive me. For years I have tried to be polite when people go off on their rants about the evils of lawsuits in America. I understand the frustrations of watching greedy people file silly lawsuits. I admit that there are greedy people and unscrupulous attorneys who will file stupid lawsuits. But those crazy suits are not the norm. In fact, that is why they make the news. But because crazy suits are filed or facts of suits are twisted in reports, people are ready to jump on the "Tort Reform" wagon.

Today a friend sent a link to a report that prompted my little rant. It was from one of the several organizations that promote tort reform. Over the years, such organizations have invested a lot of money and done a great job of convincing the public that we are a lawsuit happy nation in need of reform. They consider the money invested in promoting such reform as just another business expense. They promote public fear and panic by focusing on the most outrageous suits filed or spinning the facts of cases to convince the public that crazy cases are the norm. While they claim to promote judicial efficiency, legal ethics, or some other public purpose, their actual goal is to protect corporations from the consequences of their wrongdoing by limiting the access of ordinary citizens to be compensated by harms done to them by corporations through defective products and/or harmful services. Most tort reform organizations are funded directly and indirectly by large insurance companies and multi-national corporations who desire to make a profit, not protect the rights of individuals.

A core principle of our system of justice is the fact that those who have suffered harm from somebody else's carelessness or bad actions have remedy through the courts. The jury system allows for ordinary people to judge the facts in a dispute between an injured party and the alleged wrongdoer. The goal is to have impartial people hear the case. The goal of tort reform is to take this decision making process away from ordinary folks and give that power to the elite - legislators or corporate board members.

Have they convinced you that lawsuits are on the rise? Would it surprise you to know that the number of jury verdicts rendered last year in Alabama were the lowest in the past five years? Have they convinced you that too many people are getting rich from our system of "jackpot justice?" Would it surprise you to know that a plaintiff has a less than 50% chance of winning a case at trial? Last year in Alabama plaintiff prevailed in about 50% of the car wreck and premises liability (slip & fall) cases. The odds decrease in other types of cases. Plaintiffs won only 16% of medical negligence cases tried in Alabama last year.

Cases become more and more expensive to pursue, less likely to settle out-of-court and harder to win at trial. Tort reform has influenced jury pools. Many potential jurors walk in feeling like the plaintiff is just trying to get rich. Then in opening arguments the defense attorney is going to say that all the money in the world won't bring back [mother/daddy/spouse/child] that died as a result of [whatever wrongdoing is alleged]. This is true. The money will not bring back the loved one. But if loved one was the family breadwinner, the money may help compensate for that loss of income. Or the money the defendant (or their insurer) has to pay might make them be a little more careful next time.

I have learned that people think we are an over-litigious society until something happens to them. Then they cannot understand why they cannot find a lawyer to take their “great case” because reputable firms turn down over 90% of the potential cases in an effort to avoid “frivolous” lawsuits.

As I said in the beginning, I know there are stupid lawsuits filed. There are plenty of greedy people looking for jackpot justice and just as many greedy lawyers who will file an unfounded lawsuit trying to get some cash. However, if you follow these closely, most of these will not make it trial. Filing a silly case gets lots of media attention, but the dismissal doesn't get the same headline attention that the initial lawsuit brings. It is unfair that people have to hire lawyers to defend these stupid suits. It is also unfair that these bad experiences, coupled with “tort reform” propaganda have made it difficult for people with meritorious cases to be compensated. Lawsuits filed by individuals have continually declined over the last 10-15 years. Some statistics indicate a 21% decline. (Compared to contract disputes in business vs. business suits, which are up about 25% by some reports.)

Just remember that many improvements to products and safety standards were brought about by lawsuits. Changes in the way some companies conduct business were brought about by lawsuits. Improvements in equipment and training to properly use equipment have been brought about by lawsuits.