How's the saying go? Everyone hates lawyers until they need them.
Frankly, IMHO, lawyers are no different than any other class of professionals. Some good, some bad, some indifferent. If you want to blame something, blame the adversarial nature of the American (actually English) legal system.
Parasitic Lawyers...
In essence, wasn't it lawyers who formed the legal system? I get what you are saying though, and that's why we need tort reform where those being sued get there legal fees paid by those doing the suing if they win the case. That would do away with a big chunk of the frivolous cases. Also, how do you change a system that is controlled by those that benefit from it? As it stands, this is nothing more than state condoned extortion.
Praxis wrote:How's the saying go? Everyone hates lawyers until they need them.
Frankly, IMHO, lawyers are no different than any other class of professionals. Some good, some bad, some indifferent. If you want to blame something, blame the adversarial nature of the American (actually English) legal system.
Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Tort reform is very deceiving. It is a method to keep the "little guy" from accessing the legal system for greivences against a much better financed entity. The only thing the more financed defendant need do is delay and incurr higher legal fees to discourage the plaintiff for fear of bankruptcy. Our present system although flawed is preferable to loser pays as it levels the playing field and all players are equal. Also a judge can make the party in a trivial law suit pay the other party's legal costs.
But they're not equal. In this case the law firm has the deep pockets and has forced at least one similar company into bankruptcy because they couldn't afford to defend the case. In the event the judge does award legal fees, then naturally the law firm will appeal endlessly forcing the other party to continue spending crazy $ in hopes of settlement. At the base level if people in America had a shred of honor we wouldn't be having this conversation. As it is, it's no wonder why businesses are fleeing litigious states and the country. Is it going to take a complete and total meltdown of the country before common sense prevails?
pg john wrote:Tort reform is very deceiving. It is a method to keep the "little guy" from accessing the legal system for greivences against a much better financed entity. The only thing the more financed defendant need do is delay and incurr higher legal fees to discourage the plaintiff for fear of bankruptcy. Our present system although flawed is preferable to loser pays as it levels the playing field and all players are equal. Also a judge can make the party in a trivial law suit pay the other party's legal costs.
Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
As I mentioned before the system is not perfect but beware of throwing out the baby with the bath water. The legal system was designed to give everyone a chance for their greivences to be heard as equals. Our consumer rights are not so much being taken away as we voluntarily giving them away. Abuses do exist but what will happen when you are harmed and have little to no recourse?
Look at who is funding tort reform and anticomsumer legislation.
Look at who is funding tort reform and anticomsumer legislation.
The system is broken as it stands now...somehow these ambulance chaser types need to be reined in. Until that happens, it hurts everyone.
pg john wrote:As I mentioned before the system is not perfect but beware of throwing out the baby with the bath water. The legal system was designed to give everyone a chance for their greivences to be heard as equals. Our consumer rights are not so much being taken away as we voluntarily giving them away. Abuses do exist but what will happen when you are harmed and have little to no recourse?
Look at who is funding tort reform and anticomsumer legislation.
Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt