For fans of this site within driving distance of Albany, N.Y., I’ll be appearing tomorrow (Tues.) at the 2003 Public Forum at Albany Law School entitled, “Does America Need Tort Reform?” The host will be Prof. Timothy Lytton. I will be debating Prof. Carl Bogus of Roger Williams Law School, who is the author of “Why Lawsuits Are Good for America” as well as a considerable body of work supportive of regulation and lawsuits aimed at firearms makers. It’s free and open to the public, and includes a moderated discussion.
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Ferry-fear funding foreseen
New York City taxpayers are probably going to be liable not only for the physical injuries inflicted in Wednesday’s Staten Island Ferry crash — which include ten deaths and about 60 injuries resulting in hospitalization, some of them horrific — but also for damages potentially payable to all of the unhurt passengers, widely estimated to number 1,500. A “federal maritime doctrine allows all those who were in the face of danger and who suffered emotional distress to file for compensation, even if they were not physically injured”. Among likely claims, according to Columbia law dean David Leebron, are those from “passengers who claim to now have a fear of ferries that affects their ability to commute and earn a living”. (“City Could Face a Deluge of Suits Over Ferry Crash”, New York Times, Oct. 18; “Staten Island ferry pilot to be investigated”, AP/Globe and Mail, Oct. 16). For awards of $300,000-$6.5 million in the related area of suits by air-crash survivors with minor or no injuries, see Oct. 8, 1999, Oct. 19, 2000, and Aug. 24-26, 2001. (& welcome Samizdata.net readers)
Being beastly to bulldozers
Caterpillar Inc., the maker of earthmoving machinery, has sued Disney and Buena Vista Pictures in federal court “hoping to block the Oct. 21 release of the direct-to-DVD movie ‘George of the Jungle 2.'” The movie’s plot, evidently a marvel of originality, pits a hero and his animal sidekicks against evil “industrialists seeking to ravage and destroy the jungle”. As the Peoria paper reports, it seems “the final battle pits George and the animals against an army of Caterpillar Wheel Loaders. It didn’t help, the suit goes on to state, that the movie’s narrator calls the machines ‘maniacal’, ‘deleterious dozers’ and “bulldozing bullies.” How better to dispel an image of bullyhood than by heading to court to demand that speech critical of one’s enterprise be silenced? (Andy Kravetz, “Cat doesn’t dig ‘bulldozing bullies'”, Peoria Journal-Star, Oct. 15; “George of the Jungle, Watch Out for That Lawsuit!”, Reuters/Washington Post, Oct. 15) More: Eugene Volokh comments (Oct. 17).
Martha Stewart defended
Softening his former view of the Martha Stewart affair, Stephen Bainbridge suggests that the government may be overreaching in prosecuting Stewart for publicly denying a charge of insider trading when it does not see fit to charge her with insider trading itself (Oct. 7; Oct. 8; Oct. 9; Oct. 10; Oct. 14; and follow links from the various entries). See also Reason’s recent cover story with its unnecessarily provocative title and subhead (Michael McMenamin, “St. Martha”, Oct.). Other views: Yin Blog, Oct. 8: Daily Kos, Jun. 5; Chris Byron, “$uper Winter Sale for Martha Stewart”, New York Post/Fox News, Jun. 11. Update Jan. 27 (trial).
Welcome WHRV-FM listeners
I’ll be a guest on HearSay with Cathy Lewis on Hampton Roads, Va.’s NPR affiliate today just after noon (around 12:10 p.m. EST), discussing this site and the issue of personal responsibility. You can tune in live via WHRO/WHRV’s website. Also check out our archive of personal responsibility items.
Supreme Court to review ADA misconduct case
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Hughes Missile Systems violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when it enforced an otherwise neutral policy against rehiring workers terminated for violations of its misconduct rules, even though one consequence was to deny a second chance for an employee terminated for past drug abuse, a protected disability. (Warren Richey, “Limits of disability act tested”, Christian Science Monitor, Oct. 8). See Sept. 16-17, 2002 for our earlier take on the case. More: Dahlia Lithwick, “Junkie Justice”, Slate, Oct. 8; Tony Mauro, “Supreme Court Weighs Workplace Rights for Ex-Substance Abusers”, Legal Times, Oct. 9. Update Dec. 13: Supreme Court rules.
More on Trial Lawyers Inc.
Publicity continues for the recent report Trial Lawyers Inc., published by the Manhattan Institute’s Center for Legal Policy (with which I’m associated): The Economist (“Gone are the days when law students were expected to absorb lofty sentiments such as the one uttered by Roscoe Pound, a former dean of Harvard’s law school: ‘The professional man does not measure out his service in proportion to reward.’ Now, many law-school professors are highly-paid consultants for litigating lawyers. Even The Roscoe Pound Centre is, the report notes, funded by trial lawyers.” (Sept. 27). In the New York Sun, Ryan Sager (“The guys in white”, Sept. 29) attempts to reconcile the report’s findings with the opinions of Leon Silverman, former chairman of New York law firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. Silverman regards increased litigation as a “triumph of democracy,” though for all we know he may be a sensible person in other ways. Also see Jennifer G. Hickey, “Washington Diary: Congress Shifts Into High Gear”, Insight, Sept. 29.
Update: Pets Warehouse case
Longtime readers will remember the saga of Robert Novak, owner of Long Island-based Pets Warehouse, who first sued hobbyists who criticized his business and then went on to sue a lengthy list of online entities that seemed to have lent aid and comfort to his opponents (see Oct. 4-6, May 27, and May 22, 2002 and links from there; letter from Novak to this site, Aug. 10, 2001). This summer, Novak declared bankruptcy and he recently lost the rights to the PetsWarehouse.com domain which was purchased by one of his adversaries and presently serves as a voluminous guide to the status of Novak’s various lawsuits, many of which continue to rage unabated. See also Lisa Napoli, “Freedom of Gurgle in the Fish Tank” (opinion piece), MSNBC, Apr. 4, 2002 (& see update Dec. 28). Further update Oct. 16, 2004: Novak prevails in Alabama case and regains control of domain.
UPDATE: “FBI Probes Big Jury Awards in Mississippi”
It’s not clear what the FBI is looking for, but after a couple of $100 million+ verdicts against pharmaceutical companies in southwest Mississippi, there’s been a lot of collateral litigation that sounds like it’s from a John Grisham novel: former jurors filed suit against CBS for their coverage of the case (see Dec. 16-17, 2002), a half-dozen former plaintiffs have sued their lawyer, and three people claiming they were “runners” have alleged in litigation that they haven’t been paid promised referral fees (see May 7). Pharmacies, brought into the products liability cases as defendants to defeat federal diversity jurisdiction, are being subpoenaed regarding forged prescription records. (Matt Volz, AP, Oct. 3).