communicable disease – Overlawyered

Canada: STDs not insurable “accident”

Walter Olson — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:38:02 +0000

“The Supreme Court of Canada has taken away a $200,000 insurance award made to a Vancouver man who became paralyzed after a series of medical calamities arising from him having unprotected sex.” [The Globe and Mail]

Tags: Canada, communicable disease, insurance

Canada: STDs not insurable “accident” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Liability for flu spread?

Walter Olson — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:10:11 +0000

Some are anticipating that, per this line in Washington Post coverage:

Still, discussion [at a recent conference] centered on what employers could do to minimize the spread of the virus and to keep their doors open.

If a customer contracts the virus from the business “there’s an increased liability,” said Elizabeth Lewis, a partner at the law firm Cooley Godward Kronish.

Tags: communicable disease

Liability for flu spread? is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Assistant principal’s swine flu death

Walter Olson — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:35:54 +0000

It’s New York City’s fault, say the survivors of Mitchell Wiener in a new lawsuit over Gotham’s allegedly inadequate response to the H1N1 virus [WCBS]. More: Katie Drummond, True/Slant; Michael Falino, WatchBlog.

Tags: communicable disease, NYC

Assistant principal’s swine flu death is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Swine farms and fishing expeditions

Walter Olson — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:37:44 +0000

Texas lawyers are seeking discovery against hog-raising giant Smithfield Foods to determine whether a swine operation it partly owns in Mexico might have contributed to the death of a Harlingen woman in the H1N1 flu outbreak. “Mexican health officials have found no connection between the swine flu virus and the pig farm. Nevertheless, residents there have long blamed the farming operation for a variety of illnesses, UPI reported.” The lawsuit might seek $1 billion. [Brownsville Herald, May 12]

Tags: agriculture and farming, communicable disease, Mexico, South Texas

Swine farms and fishing expeditions is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

May 12 roundup

Walter Olson — Tue, 12 May 2009 11:29:55 +0000

Florida: “Law firm is found liable for injuries to client who fell off a chair” [WPBF via Bernabe]
Monsanto, known for hardball litigation over its patented seeds, might regret taking on duPont [AmLaw Litigation Daily, earlier here and here]
Kenyan man sues women’s rights activists for leading sex boycott that his wife joined [Daily Nation]
Notice a “sign this EFCA petition” message in your Twitter stream, about the controversial card-check union bill? Better check out its bona fides [Point of Law]
RIAA said it was going to stop filing new cases against music downloaders, but that might depend on what the definition of new cases is [Ars Technica, AmLaw Litigation Daily]
EEOC guidance warns employers about violating ADA in trying to cope with H1N1 flu virus in workplace [Daniel Schwartz, Workplace Prof Blog; related, earlier]
Cluelessness, more than censor’s urge, might explain that ghastly bill filed by Rep. Linda Sanchez to combat “cyberbullying” by throttling online speech [Jacob Sullum; earlier here, etc.]
Buxom British gals claim victory after Marks & Spencer rescinds $3 surcharge on larger-size bras [AP/Idaho Statesman, The Sun via Amy Alkon]

Tags: card check, communicable disease, patent litigation, RIAA and file sharing, Twitter, United Kingdom

May 12 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Swine flu and hotel liability

Walter Olson — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:47:24 +0000

It can get tricky when 1) having swine flu may itself count as a protected disability under laws like California’s; 2) innkeepers are required to report communicable disease to authorities; 3) they must nonetheless avoid infringing customers’ privacy; and 4) they can face liability for not taking steps to protect fellow guests and their own workers. And don’t even think of noticing that a new guest is arriving from Mexico… (via Childs; more on hotels and the ADA)

Tags: communicable disease, disabled rights, hotels

Swine flu and hotel liability is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

“TuberculEsq” sues CDC

Walter Olson — Fri, 01 May 2009 04:10:17 +0000

Atlanta lawyer Andrew Speaker says the Centers for Disease Control invaded his privacy during the 2007 cause celebre over Speaker’s having taken an international flight while suffering an unusually dangerous form of tuberculosis. [CNN; earlier here, etc.; Patrick @ Popehat]

Tags: communicable disease

“TuberculEsq” sues CDC is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Update: Andrew Speaker’s fellow passengers

Walter Olson — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 00:04:53 +0000

None of them caught tuberculosis. (Molly McDonough, “Tests Reveal Lawyer’s Fellow Air Travelers Free of TB”, ABA Journal, Nov. 28). Earlier: Jun. 2, Jul. 8.

Tags: airlines, communicable disease

Update: Andrew Speaker’s fellow passengers is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Update: “Quebec passengers sue TB-infected U.S. lawyer”

Walter Olson — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 00:05:29 +0000

“The American personal-injury lawyer who caused a health scare after flying despite being infected with a potent form of tuberculosis is facing a lawsuit by three of his fellow passengers.” Montreal lawyer Anlac Nguyen is demanding $C100,000 apiece on behalf of two Czech sisters who say they sat next to Andrew Speaker, and $C60,000 on behalf of a Laval, Que. man who sat farther away. Speaker recently learned that while he’s carrying a serious, drug-resistant and contagious form of tuberculosis, it isn’t the extremely-drug-resistant form originally suspected. (Jonathan Montpetit, Canadian Press/Toronto Star, Jul. 5). Earlier: Jun. 2.

P.S.: For those who are wondering, no, there’s not the slightest indication from the story that any of the three plaintiffs caught anything from Speaker. Update Dec. 2: tests confirm that no one flying with him caught TB.

Tags: airlines, Canada, communicable disease

Update: “Quebec passengers sue TB-infected U.S. lawyer” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

“Should they disbar TuberculEsq?”

Walter Olson — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 00:16:02 +0000

David Giacalone has some thoughts on now-notorious Atlanta personal injury lawyer Andrew J. Speaker, who doesn’t seem to have lived up very well to the Lakoff-prescribed billing of “public protection attorney” (Jun. 1). But see: Elizabeth Whelan, in the New York Post, thinks the pillorying of Speaker’s decision to fly home has been overdone (“Free Andrew! Hysteria and the TB Case”, Jun. 2). Updates: Jul. 8 (some passengers sue Speaker), Dec. 2 (no one flying with him caught TB).

Tags: Atlanta, communicable disease, ethics

“Should they disbar TuberculEsq?” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system