The Perfect Opportunity

from JoeUser Forums

I scalded myself this morning.  The valve on my coffee pot stuck open, so that after I had taken my cup away from the button it just kept pouring.  I grabbed paper towels and turned the machine so that it would pour into the sink instead of all over the counter and floor, and hot coffee spilled over the inside of my wrist.

I held it under the faucet and let cold water run on it for a while...now it's bright pink, has a little blister coming, and is really kind of sore.

The first thought that came into my head when this happened was "fuck!  that hurts!" Closely followed by "man, that's going to be a bitch to clean up".  Never did the words "oooh! lawsuit opportunity!" come to mind.

Now I'm not patting myself on the back for being better than anyone else because I didn't immediately think of litigating...I'm just stating that, for some people, every day must hold opportunities for potential lawsuits.  Spill coffee on yourself? Sue the vendor for making the coffee too hot.  Slip and fall on ice on a public sidewalk? Sue the municipality responsible for maintaining the pavement.  Get rear ended in your car?  Sue the person who hit you, and they in turn can sue the manufacturer of the car for it's faulty brakes.

I'm sure that most of us, in the course of a day, have at least one circumstance arise where (if we were so inclined) we could bring a civil suit against another person or corporation. 

So, why don't we?  What stops us?  Why do some people see every accident, every mishap, every incident, as a potential lawsuit and subsequent settlement?  What's the difference between the ordinary joe/jill and someone who is a frivolous litigator?

Is it common sense?  Is that what we have that they are lacking?  How about greed?  How much of a part does the almighty dollar play when someone litigates?  What about conscience?  Are those who sue all the time able to sleep at night?

I don't know. 

Do you?

1,671 views 21 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top
Are those who sue all the time able to sleep at night?

YES!!!
And if your son is also your lawyer, you sleep VERY well!!
Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top
I am being sued by a guy I did a project for. He is suing me instead of the business. He is claiming that he was supposed to get features for a product he didn't even buy. Worst of all though is that he is suing for programming on this product and he hasn't even paid for it.

He is an ass and I stopped working for him when he refused to pay the next installment. I guess he thought if he sued me I would just run over and do the work for free. He is wrong.
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Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top

Are those who sue all the time able to sleep at night?

YES!!!
And if your son is also your lawyer, you sleep VERY well!!

So, do you sue all the time, Mano?

Just John:

I'm sorry to hear of your legal woes.  It seems to me that people will litigate over just about anything....

Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top
So, do you sue all the time, Mano?


Only once...many years ago...and I won!!
I've wanted to many times... but always gott talked out of it.
Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top

I've wanted to many times... but always gott talked out of it.

Can I ask what it was that you wanted to sue over and why you felt litiagtion was the way to go? 

 

Case in point: http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/05/09/cat.lawsuit.ap/index.html

The woman int he linked story had a cat that was killed by her neighbor's dog.  She sued, claiming that the loss of her cat had given her bad dreams, caused her to lose sleep, and caused her to smoke more.

She got $45,000.

WTF???  Perhaps I should sue the government for causing me undue stress because they keep deploying my husband.  I could also sue the ISP for causing me strees when service goes down and I can't communiate with D.  The list could be never ending.....

Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top

He is an ass and I stopped working for him when he refused to pay the next installment.

Did you refund his initial amount?  Did you have a contract with him?  Problem is, if he had a contract with you. he can enforce it.  However, if the contract does not specifically state the features that were to be included, it is vague enough that a decent lawyer could argue our case.  Also, most contracts are in breach if payment terms are not met.  Hopefully, you will be able to either get it dismissed or get a lawyer to get him to drop the case.

People think that you can't get sued if you have a business.  But, the owner and officers can get sues individually as well as with the business.  However, most of the time the officers are indemnified by the corporation and the consequences are much different.

We are indeed a sue happy nation.  I have had things happen that I probably could sue over, but I haven't.  I think that these frivolous lawsuits just hurt the people that have legitimate ones.

Reply #7 from JoeUser Forums Top

I think that these frivolous lawsuits just hurt the people that have legitimate ones.

Exactly.  When people sue for what the rest of us would consider 'frivilous' things, they not only clog up the court system but also make a mockery out of people who sue with good reason.

I think that whilst tort reform is needed, and effective way to cut down on the amount of lawsuits would be to make to loser pay for all court costs.  I think that would be a very effective deterrent.

 

Reply #8 from JoeUser Forums Top
Here's one for you. I am currently locked ina seemingly-neverending battle with.....the parents of the guy who ran a red light and hit me. They are suing me for over a million dollars in medical bills/emotional distress etc.... Why? Because the son driving them through the red light had no insurance...and of course, they can't sue him!

We finally have a court date...on Halloween. So insteed of taking my son to parties that afternoon, I will be stuck in court.....Maybe I should sue them!
Reply #9 from JoeUser Forums Top
Can I ask what it was that you wanted to sue over and why you felt litiagtion was the way to go?


It was a malpractice suit against a doctor. I was talked out of it as it would have cost me a fortune in court fees and the fellow doctors rallied around the doctor in question... there was no way I could win.

The one time I did sue was over an incident in a resteraunt. I was hit in the head by a plate that came flying through the air... thrown by a waiter who was playing frisbee with another waiter. I sued the owner of the resteraunt for hiring irresponsible people. The waiter got fired and I walked away with a nice cash settlement.
The local newspaper had a heyday over this case.. calling it "The case of the flying saucer"
Reply #10 from JoeUser Forums Top

I am currently locked ina seemingly-neverending battle with.....the parents of the guy who ran a red light and hit me. They are suing me for over a million dollars in medical bills/emotional distress etc.... Why? Because the son driving them through the red light had no insurance...and of course, they can't sue him!

So let me get this right....he was driving with no insurance, and he was at fault...yet you're the one getting sued?  WTF???!!!  That makes NO sense.....

I was hit in the head by a plate that came flying through the air... thrown by a waiter who was playing frisbee with another waiter. I sued the owner of the resteraunt for hiring irresponsible people. The waiter got fired and I walked away with a nice cash settlement

Did you try to talk to them about it before you brought suit?  Did you try and come to some kind of agreement, or was litigation your first course of action?  Have you suffered permanent and lasting damage as a result of the incident?

I can understand some litigation where a person has been permanently damaged or obviously wronged, but....it seems that we're constantly asking the judicial system to settle our petty squabbles for us.  What happened to personal account ability, responsibility and common sense? 

Seems they're out of style anymore.

Reply #11 from JoeUser Forums Top
Did you try to talk to them about it before you brought suit?


I spoke to the owner of the resteraunt, explained what happened and showed him my cut. He added I was willing to let the whole thing slide until he added insult to injury (literally); he offered me a free can of coke! If he had offered me the meal for me and my companion to be on the house I would probably not taken him to court. It was his poor attitude that convinced me to do it.
Reply #12 from JoeUser Forums Top

It was his poor attitude that convinced me to do it.

Did he settle out of court, or did it come to trial?

Reply #13 from JoeUser Forums Top
Did he settle out of court, or did it come to trial?


It went to small claims court... there were not millions involved... it took ages, but I had my day in court..... The owner was so arrogant about the incident, he never made an out of court offer.
Reply #14 from JoeUser Forums Top
Whoa, I hope your wrist is ok Dharma. I've had scalding hot water burn my arm as a child from a faulty thermos. it was agonizing and as young as I was, I still remember it and I even have the burn marks to prove it. And no, my parents didn't sue, it was in Jamaica and we don't do law suits like that. Maybe if they had lived in the US, who knows! They would have been in the rights though cause it took many days of going in to get injected into the burned arm and many months of therapy.

Anyway, lawsuits are justified in some cases. But there are a lot of frivolous ones out there as you know. I guess every American feels it's their god given right to exercise this part of their freedom. That's the only way I can think of why there are so many!
Reply #15 from JoeUser Forums Top
I won't adress frivolous lawsuits, but will say this is one good reason to grow aloe vera , nothing gets a burn faster than a fresh slice of aloe. nothing.
Reply #16 from JoeUser Forums Top

... it took ages, but I had my day in court.....

I guess I just have a differing opinion about lawsuits.  I don't know that I would have sued over it...I might have pressed criminal charges against the person who tossed the plate at me, but then again I wasn't there so I can't say what I would have done.

Whoa, I hope your wrist is ok Dharma

Yeah, it's fine.  Nothing to worry about.  Now, If I was going to sue the company who made the coffee pot I might be on here lamenting about how my arm really hurts and how I had to hire a cleaner to come take care of my chores for me because I was so imjured I was unable to work...and about how I'm going to have to see a therapist because this incident has left me with an unatural aversion to coffee pots.....but I'm not like that, so I'll tell the truth and say I'm fine!

I guess every American feels it's their god given right to exercise this part of their freedom. That's the only way I can think of why there are so many

That's a very good point.  Add to that the fact that a lot of people seem to want something for nothing, and you have yourself a reason for all this litigation!

this is one good reason to grow aloe vera

Yep.  I had an aloe plant for ages...but as my daughter will tell you, I'm a houseplant murderer and I managed to kill it.

Reply #17 from JoeUser Forums Top
I'm a houseplant murderer and I managed to kill it.


That's it! I'm suing for the severe emotional trama to my houseplants by reading these careless comments. Now they're ailing, and I am therefore losing sleep, gaining weight, and it's affecting my job performance as a result.............
Reply #18 from JoeUser Forums Top
How do you kill an aloe? They thrive on neglect. You over water it or something? Poor little aloe.

I've always kept a nice healthy aloe around for just such emergencies. Works better than any commercial burn ointments.

Sorry to hear about your burn. Few things hurt worse or longer than a nasty burn.

I'm considering filing a suit against myself for my injuries. The only part I can't figure out is how I would know whether I won or not.
Reply #19 from JoeUser Forums Top
I guess I just have a differing opinion about lawsuits. I don't know that I would have sued over it...I might have pressed criminal charges against the person who tossed the plate at me, but then again I wasn't there so I can't say what I would have done.


The owner of any public facility must take responsibility of the staff that he hires. If anyone on that staff proves to be irresponsible in any way, it is the owner that must do something about it. Playing frisbee with a plate in a busy resteraunt in a busy part of town is not acceptable behaviour. Getting hit with said plate, requiring stitches in the head, losing two days of work as a result were reason enough to take this case to court. The judge agreed.
Reply #20 from JoeUser Forums Top

That's it! I'm suing for the severe emotional trama to my houseplants by reading these careless comments. Now they're ailing, and I am therefore losing sleep, gaining weight, and it's affecting my job performance as a result.............

HA!  You do realize that any percentage of nothing is still...well, nothing, right?  If you sue me, all you're going to get is a fixing-to-break Mercury Sable and some kid worn furniture!

How do you kill an aloe? They thrive on neglect. You over water it or something? Poor little aloe.

I don't know, but as I said, I am the quintessential houseplant killer.   Don't care what the label says, if it grows in a pot, I can kill it.  Outdoor plants are a different matter, I can grow those quite successfully...as my roses show.  I'm going to be narcissistic and post more pictures of those soon, btw.  A ton more stuff is coming into bloom... 

Getting hit with said plate, requiring stitches in the head, losing two days of work as a result were reason enough to take this case to court. The judge agreed.

Like I said, I wasn't there and I am not privy to details, so I cannot say whether I'd have sued or not. 

Reply #21 from JoeUser Forums Top
Hey Dharma,

I hope your wrist is okay. You have been through the wars lately, haven't you? There must be something really good around the corner for you, I think.

As for law suits, I have an article entitled 'It Is My Fault' about this very thing. I do not like the idea that some have of using fairly blameless incidents as money-making opportunities. In the case of Lifehappens, I believe the lawyer or legal parties involved in trying to get this case heard should be strung up by the thumbs. What an absolutely ridiculous and totally dishonest and unnecessary situation.