Posts Tagged ‘The Litigation Explosion’

Broadcast appearances

I’m scheduled to join a reporter and anchor in the studios of New York’s WCBS-Channel 2 this afternoon to discuss the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor; look for me sometime in the 5-to-6 p.m. slot.

More (7:30 p.m. Eastern): I’ll be on WCBS-TV again tomorrow between 9 and 10 a.m. for a second appearance. And (updated) on Monday morning I did two Texas radio phone interviews, including KTSA (San Antonio) with Steve Gehrlein, on the battle over Justice O’Connor’s seat, and KOLE (Beaumont), on the litigation explosion. P.S. on WCBS I mentioned Judge Edith Jones. It’s fun to be a mentioner!

Signed a waiver? Doesn’t matter

Courts stoking the litigation explosion: “For years, companies that sponsor higher risk activities such as scuba diving and skydiving have asked participants to sign waivers designed to absolve them from lawsuits if injury or death results. Yesterday, a [New Jersey] state appeals court declared those release forms do not bar relatives from filing a wrongful death lawsuit. … The court said while [Eugene J.] Pietroluongo [who died in a scuba diving accident at age 44] had the power to sign away his right to sue, the law did not allow him to sign away the rights of his survivors to bring a wrongful death lawsuit.” The court declared the waiver, voluntary or no, to be unenforceable as a policy matter. Attorneys, presumably deadpan, said the decision “could result in more lawsuits”. (Kathy Barrett Carter, “Survivors can sue despite a waiver”, Newark Star-Ledger, Apr. 13)(& letters to the editor, Jul. 26: first, second).

Update: lawsuit-funding cos. shun Ohio

Lawsuit-funding companies, which advance litigants cash in exchange for a share of the eventual booty, have apparently departed the state of Ohio since a decision this summer by the Ohio Supreme Court (see Aug. 4) finding that such activities violate a 180-year-old state law against champerty and permit intermeddlers to “gorge upon the fruits of litigation”. “Several states, including Massachusetts, New Hampshire and South Carolina, have lifted their prohibitions against the practice. At least 100 lawsuit-funding companies have emerged nationwide since 1998 when Perry Walton, a litigation-finance pioneer from Nevada, started holding seminars to teach other entrepreneurs how to make money by doing what some critics say is akin to betting on lawsuits.” (“Lawsuit-funding companies avoid Ohio after court ruling”, AP/Miami Herald, Oct. 1)(more on champerty, from The Litigation Explosion).

Lawyers’ advertising and solicitation generally

The following links and commentaries were written circa 1999 for Overlawyered.com.

Chapter 1 of your editor’s The Litigation Explosion (1991), unfortunately not online, tells the story of how in the 1970s the mood in elite legal circles changed: client-chasing by lawyers, long considered a serious ethical breach, began to be viewed less unfavorably as litigation itself came to be seen as socially positive rather than destructive.  The shift culminated in decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court  according Constitutional protection to most lawyer advertising and some solicitation. 

Solicitation: some extreme cases

Among cases mentioned in The Litigation Explosion are those where lawyers’ agents posed as a priest to mingle among grieving families after an air crash, and as Red Cross workers to dig out and sign up survivors after a store collapse.  (Even in today’s much-relaxed climate, these sorts of practices still expose attorneys to punishment if they can be proved.)  Ken Dornstein’s book Accidentally on Purpose reports on how personal injury operators set up a supposed religious charity, the “Friends of the Friendless”, whose real function was to secure them access to patients in the giant Los Angeles County Medical Center; “techniques included pressing an unconscious patient’s inked thumb to a legal retainer and threatening those who said no with deportation”. 

This September 1998 Cincinnati Enquirer article reports on a case where a lawyer was accused of soliciting a dead man.

Lawyer promotion on the Web: 

Client-chasing lawyers pioneered spam in the notorious 1994 “green card lawyers” episode, in which an Arizona law firm posted an ad to several thousand Usenet newsgroups offering immigration services; the fury among Netizens went on for months.  This account is by David Loundy in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin.

Two articles still worth a look, though written at a time when web technology was in its infancy, are “Pushing the Advertising Envelope” by T.K. Reid (State Bar of Georgia) and Mark Hankins, “Ambulance Chasers on the Internet: Regulation of Attorney Web Pages” from the Spring 1996 Journal of Technology Law and Policy (U. of Fla. Law School).  Hankins writes that “the Web is unfortunately already home to undignified attorney advertising, including a DUI attorney who sponsors a ‘drunk browsing test’ inviting users to perform the tongue-in-cheek computer equivalent of a roadside sobriety test”.  (That link is gone, however.) Reid reported, “In an informal poll I did of ten attorneys owning sites on the Web, I inquired as to what steps they had taken to insure that their page complied with their State Bar’s rules for advertising. To my great surprise several responded that they did not consider their sites to constitute advertising, and therefore had done nothing. Instead of advertising their services as an attorney, they maintained that they were acting in another role – that of a publisher of free information.”

Which brings us to “Ethics Spotlight: Attorney Malpractice for Web Site Content” by Laura W. Morgan, part of the Divorce.Net site.  Morgan looks at the question whether lawyers might be liable for offering bad advice on their websites which visitors rely on to their detriment.  The general answer is no, because law-firm websites are usually well plastered with disclaimers saying, “this isn’t real advice and don’t even think of relying on it”.  Fair enough, except that the same lawyers often aren’t so willing to respect other people’s attempts to disclaim liability.

Essay on loser-pays

The following essay was written circa 1999 by our editor and formerly appeared on the site’s topical page on loser-pays.

* * *

America differs from all other Western democracies (indeed, from virtually all nations of any sort) in its refusal to recognize the principle that the losing side in litigation should contribute toward “making whole” its prevailing opponent.  It’s long past time this country joined the world in adopting that principle; unfortunately, any steps toward doing so must contend with deeply entrenched resistance from the organized bar, which likes the system the way it is.

Overlawyered.com‘s editor wrote an account in Reason, June 1995, aimed at explaining how loser-pays works in practice and dispelling some of the more common misconceptions about the device.  He also testified before Congress when the issue came up that year as part of the “Contract with America”.  Not online, unfortunately, are most of the relevant sections from The Litigation Explosion, which argues at length for the loser-pays idea, especially chapter 15, “Strict Liability for Lawyering”.

Read On…

Archived class action materials, pre-July 2003


Madison County, Ill., 2003:To tame Madison County, pass the Class Action Fairness Act“, Jun. 12-15; “The intimidation tactics of Madison County“, Jun. 9; “‘Lawyers who won $10 bil. verdict had donated to judge’“, Apr. 30; “A bond too far“, Apr. 4-6; “Appeals bonds, again“, Apr. 2-3; “Mad County pays out again” (“light” cigarette class action), Mar. 24. 2002:Malpractice-crisis latest: let ’em become CPAs“, Oct. 7-8; “Intel sued in notorious county“, Aug. 30-Sept. 2. 2000: Update: Publishers’ Clearing House case“, Feb. 29. 1999:  “Criticizing lawyers proves hazardous” (columnist Bill McClellan makes fun of class-action attorneys, they sue him for libel), Nov. 4 (& Nov. 30; Feb. 29, 2000)

Securities class actions, 2003:Prospering despite reform“, May 5; “‘Lawyers find gold mine in Phila. pension cases’“, Mar. 21-23; “NYC challenges class action fees; taxpayers save $200 million“, Feb. 28-Mar. 2 (& Jun. 20, 2000). 2002:Updates” (Ninth Circuit ruling), Oct. 1-2; “Second Circuit: we mean business about stopping frivolous securities suits“, Aug. 29-Sept. 2; “Financial scandals: legislate in haste“, Jul. 12-14; “‘How to stuff a wild Enron’“, Apr. 22; “Judge compares class action lawyers to ‘squeegee boys’“, Apr. 18.  2001:Short-sellers had right to a drop in stock price“, Nov. 12; “Third Circuit cuts class action fees” (Cendant, CBS/ Westinghouse), Sept. 25-26 (& on Cendant, June 20, Sept. 4, 2000); “Dotcom wreckage: sue ’em all“, Aug. 7-8; “‘2d Circuit Upholds Sanctions Against Firms for Frivolous Securities Claims’” (Schoengold & Sporn), July 23; “Razorfish, Cisco, IPO suits“, May 22; “Securities law: time for loser-pays“, Mar. 2-4; “3Com prevails in shareholder suit“, Feb. 21-22; “$1,000/hour for shareholder class lawyers” (Aetna case), Feb. 14-15; “What they did for lead-plaintiff status?“, Jan. 18 (& see Feb. 21-22). 2000:Did securities-law reform fail?“, Nov. 10-12; “Emulex fraud: gotta find a defendant“, Sept. 4; “Fortune on Lerach“, Aug. 16-17; “Lion’s share” (commodity brokerage case), May 5-7; “Fee shrinkage“, May 3; “Celera stockholders vent at Milberg Weiss“, Apr. 25-26.  1999: Piggyback suit not entitled to piggybank contents” (Second Circuit rejects fees in Texaco action), Oct. 9-10; “Effects of shareholder-suit reform“, Sept. 22.

Fee review, 2003:Vitamin class action: some questions for the lawyers“, May 28; “Sauce for the gander dept.“, May 19; “NYC challenges class action fees; taxpayers save $200 million“, Feb. 28-Mar. 2 (& Jun. 20, 2000). 2002:FTC cracks down on excessive legal fees“, Oct. 1-2; “Smog fee case: ‘unreal world of greed’“, Jul. 24.  2001:Court’s chutzpah-award nominee” (Wells Fargo), Oct. 17-18; “Third Circuit cuts class action fees” (Cendant, CBS/ Westinghouse), Sept. 25-26 (& on Cendant, June 20, Sept. 4, 2000); “Coupon settlement?  Pay the lawyers in coupons“, Mar. 16-18.  2000:Fee shrinkage“, May 3; “‘Accord tossed: Class members ‘got nothing’” (Equifax, 7th Circuit), Jan. 6. 1999:Class action fee control: it’s not just a good idea, it’s the law” (Ninth Circuit on “separately negotiated” fees), Nov. 30; “Piggyback suit not entitled to piggybank contents” (2nd Circuit, Texaco), Oct. 9-10. 

Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach, 2003:Prospering despite reform“, May 5; “Milberg copyrights its complaints“, Jan. 3-6.  2002:Updates” (Ninth Circuit ruling), Oct. 1-2; “Smog fee case: ‘unreal world of greed’“, Jul. 24 (& Dec. 5, 2000, Jun. 22-24, 2001); “Judge compares class action lawyers to ‘squeegee boys’“, Apr. 18; “Milberg faces second probe” (Phila. politics), Feb. 27-28; “‘Probe of Milberg Weiss has bar buzzing’“, Jan. 28-29; “‘In a class of his own’” (Melvyn Weiss profiled in The Economist), Jan. 21-22.  2001:NFL satellite ticket class action“, June 5 (& update Aug. 20-21: court disallows settlement); “Update: cookie lawsuit crumbles“, May 9; “‘Lawyers to Get $4.7 Million in Suit Against Iomega’” (zip drive defect allegations), May 8; “California electricity linkfest” (representing San Francisco), March 26; “(Another) ‘Monster Fee Award for Tobacco Fighters’” (Calif. cities and counties), March 21-22; “3Com prevails in shareholder suit“, Feb. 21-22; “$1,000/hour for shareholder class lawyers” (Aetna case), Feb. 14-15; “What they did for lead-plaintiff status?“, Jan. 18 (& see Feb. 21-22).  2000:Fortune on Lerach“, Aug. 16-17; “Fee shrinkage“, May 3; “Celera stockholders vent at Milberg Weiss“, Apr. 25-26; “Class-actioneers’ woes“, Mar. 1; “Pokemon litigation roundup“, Jan. 10 (& Oct. 1-3, Oct. 13, 1999). 

Toshiba laptop settlement: see separate page on high-tech law

Microsoft class actions:Microsoft case and AG contributions“, Apr. 3-4, 2002; “Columnist-fest” (proposed settlement), Nov. 27, 2001; “Hiring talent from the opposing camp“, Feb. 28, 2000; “In race to sue Microsoft, some trip“, Dec. 23-26; “Microsoft roundup“, Dec. 3-5; “‘Actions without class’“, Dec. 2; “Class actions vs. high-tech“, Nov. 23; “Vice President gets an earful“, Nov. 22; “Microsoft roundup“, Nov. 17; “Fins circle in water“, Nov. 13-14; “Microsoft roundup“, Nov. 11; “Microsoft ruling: guest editorials“, Nov. 8; “Why doesn’t Windows cost more?“, Oct. 27; “Are you sure you want to delete ‘Microsoft’?“, Oct. 11. 

Employment class actions: see separate page on employment law.


Overlawyered.com commentaries:

Texas’s giant legal reform“, Jun. 18-19, 2003.

To tame Madison County, pass the Class Action Fairness Act“, Jun. 12-15, 2003; “‘Reforming class action suits’” (Class Action Fairness Act), Apr. 25-27, 2003.

Judge kicks class-action lawyers off case” (H&R Block), May 15, 2003.

Class action lawyer takes $20 million from defendant’s side“, Mar. 15-16, 2003.

FBI probes Philadelphia’s hiring of class action firm“, Jan. 31-Feb. 2, 2003.

Ninth Circuit panel sniffs collusion in bias settlement fees“, Dec. 16-17, 2002.

Auctions:Third Circuit cuts class action fees“, Sept. 25-26, 2001; “Letter to the editor” (competitive bidding for class representation), Jun. 13, 2001 (& Oct. 1-2, 2002). 

7,000 missing colors, many of them crisply green“, Aug. 29, 2002. 

‘Junk-fax’ suit demands $2 trillion“, Aug. 26, 2002; “Junk-fax litigation: blood in the water“, July 24, 2001; “Junk-fax bonanza“, March 27, 2001; “Junk fax litigation, continued“, March 3-5, 2000; “In Houston, expensive menus” (unsolicited faxes), Oct. 22, 1999. 

Penthouse sued on behalf of disappointed Kournikova-oglers“, Jun. 3-4, 2002. 

The mystery of the transgenic corn“, May 14-15, 2002. 

Editorial-fest“, Mar. 11, 2002; “Washington Post on class action reform” (good editorial), Aug. 29-30, 2001; “Actions without class” (Washington Post editorial), Dec. 2, 1999. 

The thrill of it all: plaintiffs win 28 cent coupon“, Feb. 27-28, 2002. 

‘Toyota buyers’ suit yields cash — for lawyers’“, Feb. 18-19, 2002; “Golf ball class action” (Acushnet Co.), Nov. 18-19, 1999; “Class action coupon clippers” (Washington Post on settlement abuses), Nov. 15, 1999. 

‘Congress looks to change class action system’“, Feb. 11-12, 2002; “‘They’re making a federal case out of it … in state court’“, Nov. 7-8, 2001. 

Selling out the class?” (allegations of collusive settlement in H&R Block case), April 5, 2001 (& see Dec. 3). 

Swiss banks vindicated“, Nov. 1, 2001. 

Letter to the editor (lawyers’ own incremental billing disclosed?), Oct. 22, 2001 (& see Dec. 3). 

Counterterrorism bill footnote” (forum shopping), Oct. 16, 2001; “Best little forum-shopping in Texas” (class actions make their way to Texarkana), August 27, 1999. 

Employment class actions: EEOC to the rescue“, Sept. 10, 2001. 

220 percent rate of farmer participation” (USDA black farmer settlement), July 25, 2001.

The rest of Justice O’Connor’s speech“, July 6-8, 2001. 

Blockbuster Video class action“, June 11, 2001 (& see July 3-4 (Vince Carroll column)). 

Letter to the editor” (First USA credit cards), June 13, 2001; “Bank error in your favor” (credit card holders), Sept. 27-28, 2000; & letter to the editor, Sept. 3, 2001. 

Ghost blurber case“, June 12, 2001. 

NFL satellite ticket class action“, June 5, 2001 (& update Aug. 20-21: court disallows settlement). 

Insurance class settlement scuttled“, Feb. 26, 2001. 

Florida lawyers’ day jobs, cont’d” (hotbed of class action filing), Dec. 11-12, 2000; “Florida’s legal talent, before the Chad War” (Florida Marlins ticketholders), Dec. 8-10, 2000. 

Obese soldiers class action“, Nov. 10-12, 2000. 

Sweepstakes, for sure” (American Family Publishers), Oct. 20-22, 2000; “Update: Publishers’ Clearing House case“, Feb. 29, 2000. 

Courtroom crusade on drug prices?“, Oct. 19, 2000. 

Class actions: are we all litigants yet?“, Aug. 23-24, 2000. 

Coke:Class-action lawyers to Coke clients: you’re fired“, July 21-23, 2000; “‘Coke plaintiff eavesdrops on lawyers; case unravels’” (what do lawyers tell each other after they think their clients have hung up on the conference call?), July 19-20; “‘Ad deal links Coke, lawyer in suit’” (Willie Gary, suing Coke, cuts lucrative ad deal with it), May 11, 2000.

Target Detroit” (lawyers countersue DaimlerChrysler and exec personally), July 19-20, 2000; “Turning the tables” (DaimlerChrysler sues class action lawyers), Nov. 12, 1999. 

Class-action assault on eBay“, July 13, 2000. 

AOL ‘pop-up’ class action” (ads said to be unfair), June 27, 2000. 

Rise, fall, and rise of class actions” (enormous increase in filing rates in past decade), Mar. 10-12, 2000. 

Criticizing lawyers proves hazardous” (columnist Bill McClellan makes fun of class-action attorneys, they sue him for libel), Nov. 4, 1999 (update Nov. 30: he criticizes them again, though suit is still pending); “Update: Publishers’ Clearing House case” (judge approves settlement including legal fee request; agreement reached to end libel suit), Feb. 29, 2000. 

Secrets of class action defense“, Feb. 25, 2000; “Mobile Register probes class action biz” (BancBoston and other mortgage escrow cases), Feb. 7, 2000. 

AOL upgrade’s sharp elbows“, Feb. 12-13, 2000. 

Weekend reading: columnist-fest” (Laura Pulfer on suit against Ralph Lauren outlet stores; Alex Cockburn on Swiss banks), Feb. 5-6, 2000. 

From our mail sack: unclear on the concept“, Jan. 28, 2000. 

Santa came late” (suit against Toys-R-Us for missing Christmas delivery), Jan. 19, 2000. 

Pokemon litigation roundup“, Jan. 10, 2000;  “Pokemon cards update“, Oct. 13, 1999; “Pokemon-card class actions“, Oct. 1-3, 1999

Expert witnesses and their ghostwriters” (life insurance class actions), Jan. 4, 2000. 

Lawyers for famine and wilderness-busting?” (anti-biotech), Jan. 3, 1999. 

Class action toy story” (antitrust), Dec. 29-30, 1999. 

‘In race to sue Microsoft, some trip’” (lawyers inadvertently copy details of pleadings in earlier cases), Dec. 23-26, 1999. 

Rolling the dice, cont’d” (suits over online gambling), Dec. 7, 1999 (earlier report, Aug. 26). 

Beware of market crashes” (class action sought against E*Trade for alleged computer-related trading losses), Nov. 26-28, 1999. 

Are they kidding, or not-kidding?” (proposals for suits against makers of fattening foods, losing sports teams), Nov. 15, 1999. 

Public by 2-1 margin disapproves of tobacco suits” (if class actions are filed on behalf of the public, why don’t they reflect public opinion?), Nov. 5-7, 1999. 

Demolition derby for consumer budgets” (class action against State Farm over generic crash parts), Oct. 8, 1999. 

Power attracts power” (Boies joins anti-HMO effort), Sept. 30, 1999; “Impending assault on HMOs“, Sept. 30. 

$49 million lawyers’ fee okayed in case where clients got nothing” (secondhand smoke action), Sept. 28, 1999; “Personal responsibility takes a vacation in Miami” (tobacco class-action verdict), Jul. 8, 1999.

Judge throws out four WWII reparations lawsuits“, Sept. 20, 1999. 

Tainted cycle” (Milwaukee taxpayers sue themselves), Sept. 2, 1999. 

Three insurers sued for $100 million” (how the press covers class action announcements), Aug. 20, 1999.


Resources on class actions are found at many different places on Overlawyered.com.  For example, most of the massive lawsuits filed against individual industries over personal injury to classes of consumers are covered on pages specific to the subject matter of the cases, such as the pages on firearms litigation, tobacco litigation, managed-care litigation, breast implant litigation, product liability, and so forth. 

This page assembles resources on class actions as a procedural device and as an institution.  Among topics covered are the unique role in this area of an “entrepreneurial” plaintiff’s bar that decides on its own behalf who and how to sue and lines up clients as needed; the history of the device and the reasons why it is either sharply limited or virtually unknown in the courts of other industrial democracies; the distinctive ethical problems that arise because of the extreme difficulty of policing lawyers’ faithfulness to the interests of the absent class; and the operations of the class action “industry” in the areas in which it has been a familiar part of the American legal landscape for decades, namely shareholder litigation and class actions over consumer and antitrust grievances aggregating large numbers of (usually smallish) claims. 

Background — procedural history, ethical issues:

Overlawyered.com‘s editor wrote about class actions (as well as “champerty and maintenance”, the “invisible-fist theory”, and other topics) in Chapter 3 of his book The Litigation Explosion; an excerpt is online

Chapter 5 (“The New Town Meeting”) of Peter Huber’s book Liability: The Legal Revolution and Its Consequences contains a valuable discussion of the class action format, particularly as it applies to the so-called toxic tort; it is unfortunately not online. 

Lawrence Schonbrun, a Northern California attorney who has developed a specialty in filing challenges to excessive class action attorneys’ fee requests, wrote a prescient article in 1996 on “coupon deals”, “separately negotiated” fees from defendants, and other innovative ways the class action bar was finding to escape scrutiny of its remuneration.  (“Class Actions: The New Ethical Frontier“) 

Shareholder litigation:

A starting point for research on this topic is Stanford Law School’s comprehensive Securities Class Action Clearinghouse.  See also the commentaries on this site

In Felzen v. Andreas (1998), Judge Frank Easterbrook of the Seventh Circuit wrote that “Many thoughtful students of the subject conclude, with empirical support, that derivative actions do little to promote sound management and often hurt the firm by diverting the managers’ time from running the business while diverting the firm’s resources to the plaintiffs’ lawyers without providing a corresponding benefit.”  He cited a long list of scholarly articles including Janet Cooper Alexander, Do the Merits Matter? A Study of Settlements in Securities Class Actions, 43 Stanford L. Rev. 497 (1991), which found that the “structural characteristics common to securities class actions . . . combine to produce outcomes that are not a function of the substantive merits of the case.” and Roberta Romano, The Shareholder Suit: Litigation without Foundation?, 7 J. L. Econ. & Organization 55 (1991), which examined 39 shareholder suits filed between the late 1960s and 1987 and concluded that “shareholder litigation is a weak, if not ineffective, instrument of corporate governance.” 

In 1995 Congress passed the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, which aimed to rectify some of the worst abuses in the field.  This client memo from Fried, Frank describes the wider powers institutional investors obtained under the act to influence litigation going on purportedly in the name of investors such as themselves. 

In Polar International Brokerage v. Reeve, a New York federal judge rejected a proposed class action settlement and request for $200,000 in attorneys’ fees, saying it offered shareholders “nothing of real value”.  (Deborah Pines, National Law Journal, May 24, 1999). 

Although the securities bar frequently alleges that well-known companies in Silicon Valley and elsewhere are run by crooked managements that fleece their shareholders, they ironically turn out to keep a lot of their (very substantial) stock holdings invested in the very same companies. (Paul Elias, San Francisco Recorder, June 8, 1999).  Among the reasons is that in many cases they have accepted stock as payment for dropping earlier legal actions. 

Other class action resources:

The Federalist Society publishes a Class Action Watch newsletter.  The first issue is in conventional web-page format. The second issue is a PDF document (Adobe Acrobat needed to view; get it here). 

Among the better-known law firms representing class action plaintiffs are Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach LLP, Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein LLP, Cohen Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, Krause & Kalfayan, and Barrack, Rodos & Bacine

Actuary Jack Patterson has written an account for a plaintiff’s lawyer readership of class actions against life insurance companies, one of the big practice areas of the 1990s. 

The class action bar also files many antitrust suits on behalf of large groups of consumers or business purchasers.  The Antitrust Policy web site collects many worthwhile resources on antitrust law.

Archived family law items, pre-July 2003

[probate and estate law cases]

Decorating for reconciliation“, May 29, 2003.

Pet custody as legal practice area“, Feb. 17, 2003; “Officious intermeddlers, pet division” (lawyers intervene on behalf of couple’s cats and dogs), May 14-15, 2002.

Custody and visitation, 2003:‘The Politics of Family Destruction’” (Stephen Baskerville), Jan. 7-8. 2002:Rethinking grandparent visitation“, Oct. 21; “‘Avoiding court is best defence’“, Jan. 14-15. 2001:Columnist-fest” (John Tierney), May 25-27; “Solomon’s child“, Jan. 26-28.  1999:Spreading to Australia?” (smoking and child custody), Dec. 29-30; “Chicago’s $4 million kid” (custody battle royal), Sept. 17-19.

Child support, 2003:‘The Politics of Family Destruction’” (bans on fathering more children), Jan. 7-8 (& Nov. 28, 2001). 2001:Wrong guy?  Doesn’t seem to matter“, Aug. 7-8; “‘Judge orders parents to support 50-year-old son’“, Aug. 7-8. 2000:State errors unfairly cast some dads as deadbeats“, Sept. 8-10; “Not child’s father, must pay anyway” (plus: “throwaway dads”), May 22; “Pilloried, broke, alone” (Donna LaFramboise on “deadbeat dads”), Apr. 10. 1999:Beating up on ‘deadbeat dads’“, Aug. 23.

Lawyers fret about bad image“, Oct. 3, 2002.

Hizzoner’s divorce, settled at last“, Jul. 16-17, 2002.

Lawyer’s 44-hour workday” (social service agency, uncontested adoptions), Jun. 28-30, 2002. 

Anti-circumcision suit advances“, Aug. 19, 2002; “By reader acclaim: suing over circumcision“, Feb. 28-March 1, 2001; “Folk medicine meets child abuse reporting” (“coining” of skin), May 31-Jun. 2, 2002. 

Restraining orders:‘The Politics of Family Destruction’“, Jan. 7-8, 2003; “A menace in principle“, Mar. 4, 2002; “Fateful carpool“, Aug. 23-24, 2000; “Stay away, I’ve got a court order“, Aug. 11-13; “Recommended reading” (Dan Lynch in Albany Times-Union), Jan. 25, 2000; “Hitting below the belt“, Oct. 26, 1999; “Injunctive injustice“, Oct. 14; “Weekend reading” (“Why is Daddy in jail?…For the crime of wanting to see his child”), Sept. 25-26, 1999; “Hitting below the belt” (Cathy Young, Salon). 

Mom wants to be sued” (for negligent injury to fetus), Jan. 4-6, 2002.

‘Wrongful life’ comes to France“, Dec. 11, 2001; “Meet the ‘wrongful-birth’ bar“, Aug. 22-23 (& letter to the editor, Sept. 3; more on wrongful birth/life: Jan. 9-10, May 20-21, Jul. 1-2, 2002; Nov. 22-23, Sept. 8-10, June 8, May 9, Jan. 8-9, 2000).

Women’s rights: British law, or Islamic?“, Nov. 13, 2001.

Rush to reconcile“, Sept. 27, 2001. 

Why she’s quitting law practice” (Canadian lawyer Karen Selick), Aug. 13-14, 2001. 

Canadian court: divorce settlements never final“, May 15, 2001; “Down repressed-memory lane II: distracted when she signed” (separation agreement), Dec. 29-30, 1999. 

‘Halt cohabiting or no bail, judge tells defendants’” (1805 N.C. law), May 8, 2001; “Dusting ’em off” (old laws against “alienation of affection”, cohabitation), May 18-21, 2000. 

‘State running background checks on new parents’” (Michigan), Apr. 3-4, 2001; “Expanding definitions of child abuse“, Feb. 16-19, 2001; “Battered?  Hand over your kids“, July 13, 2000. 

‘Victim is sued for support’” (Canada: husband shot by wife may have to pay her), Feb. 9-11, 2001; “Pay us for this service” (husband dunned for cost of defending wife charged with murdering their kids), Dec. 22, 1999. 

Do as the Douglases do” (pre-nuptial agreements), Jan. 10, 2001. 

Behind the subway ads” (1-800-DIVORCE, etc.), Dec. 18-19, 2000; “State of legal ethics” (ad for will-contest litigation), Oct. 5-6; “Honey, you’ve got mail” (solicitations from divorce lawyers arrive before unsuspecting spouses know they’re being divorced), July 15, 1999. 

Family law roundup” (English couple’s divorce costs ?840,000; frequent flier miles argued over; charges of clubby Marin County, Calif. courts), Nov. 7, 2000. 

Dangerous divorce opponents” (when spouse is lawyer), Sept. 21, 2000. 

The asset hider“, May 16, 2000; “No, honey, nothing special happened today” (woman seeking divorce fails to tell husband she just won California lottery), Nov. 20-21, 1999. 

Columnist-fest: liberal aims, illiberal means” (Stuart Taylor on same-sex marriage, William Raspberry on grandparents’ rights), Feb. 24, 2000. 

Scorched-earth divorce tactics?  Pay up” (Massachusetts decisions adopt loser-pays as sanction), Jan. 31, 2000. 

Dear Abby: Please help…” (sue married man for breach of promise to follow through on divorce?), Jan. 11, 2000. 

Christmas lawyer humor” (Richard Crouch, “Joys of the season for divorce lawyers”), Dec. 23-26, 1999. 

Splitsville, N.Y.” (New York magazine cover story), Dec. 17-18, 1999. 

Weekend reading” (some celebrities tuck nondisclosure contracts into the envelope with wedding invitations), Aug. 7-8, 1999.



Articles by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson:

Free To Commit” (Louisiana covenant marriage law), Reason, October 1997. 

At Law: Divorce Court New York Style“, City Journal, Spring 1993. 

Kidlib and Mrs. Clinton: The Hand that Rocks the Cradle” (children’s rights), National Review, May 11, 1992. 

Suing Ourselves to Death“, (vagueness of custody standards; excerpt, The Litigation Explosion), Washington Post, April 28, 1991.


Countless websites deal with divorce, custody and other family-law topics. A great many of these are put up by persons outraged at what they’ve gone through in their own experiences in court.  Among sites with a reformist focus, many align themselves with one or another camp among family roles: thus there are sites that focus on husbands’ legal woes and those that focus on wives’; sites for custodial and for non-custodial parents, for birth parents, for adoptive parents and for adoptees; and so forth.  Yet dissatisfaction with the legal system’s handling of family breakup, and outrage at exorbitant costs, tactical gamesmanship, judges with too much arbitrary power, unreliable expert opinion, and outright perjury and invention, are themes that weave through sites from all sides.  Indeed, one lesson from comparing a variety of sites is that innocent parties of every sex, age and condition are victimized by legal hardball — and that the process produces many more losers than winners. 

Books of interest:

Karen Winner, “Divorced from Justice : The Abuse of Women and Children by Divorce Lawyers and Judges
Cathy Young, “Ceasefire! Why Women and Men Must Join Forces to Achieve True Equality“. 
Richard Ofshe and Ethan Watters, “Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, and Sexual Hysteria” 
Margaret Hagen, “Whores of the Court: The Fraud of Psychiatric Testimony and the Rape of American Justice” (currently unavailable)

Archived legal ethics items, pre-July 2003

Bar discipline and client protection, 2003: Probate’s misplaced trust” (Washington Post series), Jun. 16-17. 2002:Crumbs from the table“, Feb. 8-10.  2001:Law firm sued over fen-phen settlement practices“, Dec. 28; “Updates” (IOLTA), Dec. 15-16 (& Jan. 31); “Holiday special” (Canadian lawyer’s misconduct), May 28; “Mills of legal discipline” (updates on Brock, Hager, Fieger cases), Mar. 3; “Dangers of complaining about lawyers” (Ga. considers easing defamation counter-complaints by lawyers), Mar. 30-Apr. 1.  2000:‘Judge Lenient With Perjurer, Cites Clinton Case’“, Oct. 16-17 (& May 16); “Disbarred, with an asterisk” (Mass. has let many attorneys resume practice), Sept. 20; “Funds that don’t protect” (client protection funds), Aug. 23-24; “Fit to practice?” (California bar disciplinary board), Aug. 21-22; “That Hager case” (American U. law professor Mark Hager, settlement of Warner-Lambert Nix lice treatment case), Feb. 23 (& update May 3, 2001: board recommends three-year suspension). 

New legal ethics weblog” (ethicalEsq.?), Jun. 6-8, 2003.

Judicial conduct, 2003:Year’s most injudicious judges”  (NLJ roundup), May 6. 2002:‘Federal authorities say judge offered illegal payoff’“, Sept. 3-4; “‘Privileged chambers’” (Albany Times-Union series), May 30; “‘Injudicious conduct’” (NLJ roundup), May 1-2; “La. officials seek oyster judge recusal“, Mar. 25-26; “So depressed he stole $300K“, Mar. 19.  2001:‘Pseudologica fantastica’ won’t fly” (judge’s resum?ibs), June 7 (& update Aug. 20-21); “‘Judges behaving badly’” (NLJ roundup), May 11-13.  2000:Year’s most injudicious judges“, Jun. 5, 2000; “Brockovich story, cont’d: the judges’ cruise“, Apr. 18; “New Hampshire high court blowup“, Apr. 5 (& updates Oct. 11: chief justice acquitted at impeachment; May 3, 2001); “The costs of disclosure” (Washington state, Grant Anderson case), Jan. 19. 

Class action lawyer takes $20 million from defendant’s side“, Mar. 15-16, 2003.

Politico’s law associate suspended over ‘runner’ use” (Louisiana), Feb. 14-16, 2003.

Civility:Law’s attraction for the bully“, Dec. 13-15, 2002; “‘Attorney Ordered To Pay Fees for “Rambo” Tactics’“, Oct. 5-7, 2001; “Mills of legal discipline” (Geoffrey Fieger tirade against judges), May 3, 2001 (& more on Fieger: Apr. 23-24, 2002, Sept. 14, 1999; “Another Mr. Civility nominee” (“dreck”, “scum”), June 2-4, 2000; “From the incivility frontier” (“gag a maggot off a meat wagon”, “proctology exam”), April 19; “Majesty of the law” (alleged threat to kill opposing counsel), March 13, 2000 (& update May 17: attorney sanctioned); “Bright future in some areas of practice” (“abusive, hostile” applicant for law license), Oct. 13, 1999 (update, Nov. 23). 

Race-bias cases gone wrong“, Jan. 24-26, 2003.

Lawyers fret about bad image” (Fla. bar plans to rate and monitor tone of journalists’ coverage), Oct. 3, 2002. 

FTC cracks down on excessive legal fees“, Oct. 1-2, 2002. 

Second Circuit: we mean business about stopping frivolous securities suits” (scope of Rule 11), Aug. 29-Sept. 2, 2002. 

Lawyer’s 44-hour workday“, Jun. 28-30, 2002; “Charged $16,000 for brief he copied from book“, May 17-19, 2002; “Lending rules trip up litigation-finance firms“, Dec. 3, 2001; Letter to the editor (incremental billing disclosed?), Oct. 22, 2001; “Law-firm bill-padding?  Say it isn’t so!“, Nov. 18, 1999. 

‘Student gets diploma after threatening lawsuit’“, Jun. 13, 2002.

Truth value, 2002:Lying’s not nice, especially when representing the bar“, Jul. 30-31; “Columbia Law School survey on public attitude toward lawyers“, Apr. 26-28; “‘Ex-student sentenced for rape lie’” (wants to become attorney), Jan. 11-13 (& see May 26-29, 2000: Stephen Glass graduates Georgetown Law).  2001: Criminal defense attorneys, doing what they do best“, Dec. 15-16; “‘Lawyers pay price for cruel hoaxes’” (phony heir claims after plane crashes), Aug. 3-5; “‘Lie-tery winners’“, April 20-22.  2000:What was the Florida court thinking?” (Boies-submitted affidavit), Dec. 11-12; “‘Judge Lenient With Perjurer, Cites Clinton Case’“, Oct. 16-17 (& May 16); “The judge wasn’t asleep” (sanctions for submission of dubious affidavits), June 14-15.  1999:If true, then all the better” (excerpt from Campos, Jurismania), Dec. 3-5; and see witness coaching, below. 

‘”Little” done for firm, Rendell says’” (law firms provide no-show jobs for politicians), May 9, 2002. 

‘Former clients sue attorney O’Quinn’” (Kennedy Heights case), Apr. 8-9, 2002 (& Aug. 4, 1999).

Gary & Co. shenanigans at Maris trial“, Apr. 1-2, 2002. 

Lawyers stage sham trial aimed at inculpating third party“, Mar. 22-24, 2002. 

Disclosure:Lending rules trip up litigation-finance firms“, Dec. 3, 2001; Letter to the editor (incremental billing disclosed?), Oct. 22, 2001; “Trial lawyers knew of tire failures, didn’t inform safety regulators“, June 25 (& June 28)(& letter to the editor, July 6); Letter to the editor (ghostwriting), June 13; “ABA’s toothless ethics proposals“, Jan. 17, 2001; “Contingency fee reform“, Nov. 1, 2000. 

Contingent fees, 2001:Lending rules trip up litigation-finance firms“, Dec. 3; “Red-light cameras“, Sept. 6, 2001; “‘The Louima millions’“, July 24; “The rest of Justice O’Connor’s speech“, July 6-8; “Evils of contingent-fee tax collection, cont’d“, May 30; “Reclaiming the tobacco loot“, March 15; “Hugh Rodham’s ‘success fee’“, Feb. 23-25; “Dangers of tax farming“, Jan. 10 (& letter to the editor, Jan. 16).  2000:Contingency fee reform“, Nov. 1; “‘Lawyer take all’” (equity stakes in clients), Oct. 27-29.  1999:Piece of the action” (contingent fees for public officials), Dec. 3-5; “Reform stirrings on public contingency fees“, Oct. 15.

Witness coaching, 2001:GAF sues asbestos lawyers“, Feb. 12-13, 2001 (& see Dec. 10).  2000:‘N.Y. lawyer charged in immigrant smuggling’“, Sept. 22-24; “Sunday’s Times on Fred Baron“, June 5 (& see “Thanks for the memories” by Walter Olson, Reason, June 1998 and subsequent letters exchange with William Hodes).  1999:State of legal ethics” (hey, what’s wrong with witness coaching?), Sept. 9. 

‘The Great Mouthpiece’” (Manhattan’s Bill Fallon, 1920s), Dec. 28, 2001. 

‘Halliburton shares plunge on verdict’” (law-firm whistleblowing), Dec. 10, 2001. 

‘2d Circuit Upholds Sanctions Against Firms for Frivolous Securities Claims’“, July 23, 2001 (more on sanctions: Jul. 30-31, 2002). 

Estate law temptations“, July 6-8, 2001; “Lawyers charged with $4.7 million theft from clients“, April 10, 2000; “Lawyers stealing less, clients say“, Dec. 21, 1999. 

Lost his live client, had to substitute dead one instead“, April 11, 2001; “Turn of the screw” (lawyers alleged to have sued without client consent), Oct. 24, 2000; “Curious feature of lawyer’s retainer” (allowed him to settle case without client consent), Sept. 12, 2000. 

‘It’s time to disarm the hired guns’” (Arianna Huffington), Feb. 28-March 1, 2001; “Trustworthy professionals” (survey of public confidence), Dec. 11-12, 2000. 

Fed prosecutors chafe at state ethics rules“, Oct. 16-17, 2000. 

Lenzner: ‘I think what we do is practice law’” (private investigator in Oracle scandal), July 28-30, 2000. 

Access to something” (lawyer accused of working for Social Security Administration while helping clients sue it), July 13, 2000. 

Ready to handle your legal needs” (Stephen Glass graduates Georgetown Law), May 26-29, 2000. 

Steering the evidence” (DaimlerChrysler gets sanctions against lawyers for evidence and witness tampering), May 23, 2000 (& update June 26). 

‘Ad deal links Coke, lawyer in suit’” (Willie Gary, suing Coca-Cola on behalf of clients, enters into a lucrative ad deal with it), May 11, 2000. 

Splash of reality” (sanctions for frivolous litigation in case of claimed Jackson Pollock painting), May 4, 2000. 

Brockovich story, cont’d: the judges’ cruise“, April 18, 2000; “Brockovich story breaks wide open“, April 17, 2000 (& see Dec. 21). 

Majesty of the law” (Phila. attorney Marvin Barish could face sanctions for allegedly threatening to kill opposing counsel during trial break), March 13, 2000; “Relax, you’re being taken care of” (Barish advances injury client’s rent and expenses), Dec. 14, 1999. 

Legal ethics meet medical ethics” (lawyers advise schizophrenic murder defendant to go off his medication for trial), Feb. 26-27, 2000. 

Secrets of class action defense” (assisting cooperative opponent to draft complaint), Feb. 25, 2000. 

Watchdogs could use watching” (fee-splitting in Florida securities cases), Jan. 20, 2000. 

The costs of disclosure” (lawyer reveals misconduct by client, judge), Jan. 19, 2000; “Pack your toothbrush, son” (Ala. law-firm whistleblower), Dec. 20, 1999. 

Popular CLE course: ‘How to Hammer Allstate’” (insurer charged with unauthorized practice of law), Dec. 22, 1999 (update, April 18, 2000). 

Splitsville, N.Y.” (New York mag on divorce), Dec. 17-19, 1999. 

Victory in Florida” (plaintiffs deliberately run up gunmakers’ costs for leverage), Dec. 14, 1999. 

Weekend reading: evergreens” (St. Petersburg Times Pulitzer series on probate law), Dec. 3-5, 1999; “From the evergreen file: L.A. probate horror” (estate of art collector Fred Weisman), Nov. 20-21; “Weekend reading: evergreens” (Denver probate nightmare), Oct. 23-24, 1999. 

Class action fee control: it’s not just a good idea, it’s the law“, Nov. 30, 1999; “Class action coupon-clippers“, Nov. 15; “$49 million legal fee okayed in case where clients got nothing“, Sept. 28, 1999. 

Accommodating theft“, Nov. 11, 1999. 

Who loves trusts-and-estates lawyers?“, Nov. 8, 1999. 

Criticizing lawyers proves hazardous“, Nov. 4, 1999 (update, Nov. 30); “No spotlight on me, thanks” (Houston’s John O’Quinn), Aug. 4, 1999. 

State of legal ethics” (lawyers take out glossy ad to stir up will-contest litigation), Oct. 5-6, 1999. 

Weekend reading: evergreens” (lawyer-abetted accident fraud), Sept. 25-26, 1999; “Wages of wrongdoing” (Staten Island lawyers convicted), Sept. 8, 1999. 

Join our new Verdict Rewards program” (checks for jurors), Sept. 13, 1999 (updates, Sept. 17-19, 1999 and Aug. 4-7, 2000). 

Cook County law bills a secret“, Sept. 11-12, 1999. 

My lawyer is an impostor“, Sept. 3, 1999. 

ABA thinks it can discourage ‘pay-for-play’“, Aug. 11, 1999 (& Aug. 14-15 update). 

Like calling the Orkin man to talk about bugs” (ABA convention), Aug. 10, 1999; “Weekend reading” (ABA choice of speakers), Aug. 28-29, 1999. 

No need for speed“, Aug. 3, 1999. 

Weekend reading” (at execution sale, law firm buys up client’s right to sue it for malpractice), July 31-Aug. 1, 1999. 

Honey, you’ve got mail” (solicitations from divorce lawyers arrive before unsuspecting spouses know they’re being divorced), July 15, 1999.


Articles by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson:

Thanks for the memories” (coaching of witnesses), June 1998 (& subsequent letters exchange with William Hodes) 

Tobacco Analysts Meet the Plaintiff’s Lawyers” (abuse of pretrial discovery), Wall Street Journal, August 30, 1995. 

Juries on Trial“, review of The Jury by Stephen J. Adler and We the Jury by Jeffrey Abramson, Reason, February 1995. 

Sue City: The Case Against the Contingency Fee“, excerpt from The Litigation Explosion, Policy Review, Winter 1991 [in two parts] [part one] [part two

Dentists, Bartenders, and Lawyer Unpopularity“, Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo #37, April 1999. 

Lawyers with Stethoscopes: Clients Beware“, Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo #26, June 1996. 

Taming the Litigators: Why Not More Disclosure?“, Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo #24, February 1996.


Codes of ethics:

ABA Center for Professional Responsibility
Overview — Rules of Lawyer Conduct
U.S. Judges Code of Conduct
California Rules of Professional Conduct
D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct

Some online articles of interest:

James McCauley, “The Ethics of Making Legal Services Affordable…” (Virginia bar; discusses unauthorized practice, pro se litigation) 

Rep. Chris Cox, Testimony on tobacco settlement (1997)

Lawrence Schonbrun, “Class Actions: The New Ethical Frontier” (Manhattan Institute, 1996)

Archived medical items, pre-July 2003

Texas’s giant legal reform“, Jun. 18-19, 2003.

Malpractice suit crisis, 2003:Letter to the editor“, Jun. 20-22; “Docs leaving their hometowns“, Jun. 12-15; “Juggling the stats“, Jun. 4-5; “Malpractice studies“, May 12; “Public Citizen’s bogus numbers“, Apr. 10-13; “Malpractice crisis hits sports-team docs” (& general roundup), Apr. 7-8; “Would you go into medicine again?“, Mar. 18; “‘Public deceit protects lawsuit abuse’“, Mar. 15-16; “One solution to the malpractice crunch“, Feb. 19; “Feinstein set to back Bush malpractice plan“, Feb. 12; “State of the Union“, Jan. 29; “Malpractice-cost trends“, Jan. 24-26; “ATLA’s hidden influence“, Jan. 21-22; “Playing chicken on malpractice reform“, Jan. 9; “‘Doctors strike over malpractice costs’” (W.Va., Pa.), Jan. 3-6.  2002:Campaign roundup“, Nov. 4-5; “Pennsylvania House votes to curb venue-shopping“, Oct. 11-13; “Rumblings in Mississippi“, Oct. 9-10 (& Sept. 9-10); “Let ’em become CPAs“, Oct. 7-8; “Tour of the blogs“, Sept. 24; “You mean I’m suing that nice doctor?“, Aug. 1; “‘Bush urges malpractice damage limits’“, Jul. 29; “‘Trauma center reopens doors’“, Jul. 18; “Malpractice crisis latest” (Pa., Tex.), Jun. 11-12; “Sick in Mississippi?  Keep driving“, Jun. 3-4 (& Apr. 5-7); “‘Rocketing liability rates squeeze medical schools’“, May 28-29; “‘The trials of John Edwards’“, May 20-21; “Ob/gyns warn of withdrawal“, May 17-19; “‘The Tort Mess’” (Forbes, etc.), May 13; “Texas doctors’ work stoppage“, Apr. 11 (& Mar. 15-17); “No more ANZAC Day marches?” (Australia), Apr. 1-2; “Scenes from a malpractice crisis“, Mar. 5; “Med-mal: should doctors strike?“, Jan. 21-22.  2001:  “Soaring medical malpractice awards: now they tell us“, Sept. 11; “‘Valley doctors caught in “lawsuit war zone”‘“, May 3; “Pennsylvania MDs drop work today“, Apr. 24; “Philadelphia juries pummel doctors“, Jan. 24-25.  2000:Trial lawyers’ clout in Albany“, Oct. 4; “Malpractice outlays on rise in Canada“, Oct. 2. 

Ob/gyn, 2003:Juggling the stats“, Jun. 4-5; “Malpractice studies“, May 12; “‘Edwards doesn’t tell whole story’“, Mar. 4 (& letter to the editor, Mar. 31); “‘Delivering Justice’“, Feb. 27.  2002:Ob/gyns warn of withdrawal“, May 17-19 (& see Jun. 11-12); “‘Support case hinges on failed sterilization’” (Ind.), Apr. 26-28; “Med-mal: should doctors strike?“, Jan. 21-22.  2001:Fleeing obstetrics, again“, Dec. 21-23; “‘Wrongful life’ comes to France“, Dec. 11 (& updates Jan. 9-10, May 20-21, Jul. 1-2, 2002); “Meet the ‘wrongful-birth’ bar“, Aug. 22-23 (& letter to the editor, Sept. 3; more on wrongful birth/life: Nov. 22-23, Sept. 8-10, June 8, May 9, Jan. 8-9, 2000); “Pennsylvania MDs drop work today“, April 24; “Caesarean rate headed back up“, Feb. 5.  2000:Birth cameras not wanted“, Oct. 18; “Plastic surgeons must weigh patients’ state of mind, court says” (roundup: anti-abortion suits), Aug. 15.  1999:‘Trial lawyers on trial’” (Norplant, etc.), Dec. 23-26; “‘Your perfect birth control…blocked?’“, Aug. 11 (Norplant) (& update Aug. 27; company to settle 36,000 suits); “Yes, this drug is missed” (hospital admissions for hyperemesis tripled after lawyers drove Bendectin off market), Jul. 21. 

Malpractice studies“, May 12, 2003; “Radiologists: sue them enough and they’ll go away“, Nov. 2, 2000 (& see Sept. 24, 2002).

Nursing homes, geriatrics, 2003:Florida: ‘New clout of trial lawyers unnerves legislators’“, Mar. 20; “$12,000 a bed“, Mar. 19.  2001:Soaring medical malpractice awards: now they tell us“, Sept. 11; “‘Doctor liable for not giving enough pain medicine’“, Jun. 15-17; “‘Nursing homes a gold mine for lawyers’“, Mar. 13-14.  2000:‘Litigation grows in ailing nursing home industry’“, Jun. 20 (& see Mar. 2-4, 2001). 

Incoming link of the day“, Mar. 5-7, 2003.

Emergency medicine:‘Trauma centers warn lives could be at risk’” (Orlando), Feb. 28-Mar. 2, 2003; “Ambulances, paramedics sued more“, Oct. 28-29, 2002; “Let ’em become CPAs“, Oct. 7-8; “Avoid having a medical emergency in Mississippi“, Apr. 5-7; “Scenes from a malpractice crisis” (closure of trauma centers), Mar. 5, 2002  (& see Jun. 11-12); “That’ll teach ’em” (Chicago EMS), Dec. 26-28, 2000; “Highway responsibility” (ambulance, hospital sued in Derrick Thomas crash), Nov. 28, 2000. 

The jury pool he faced“, Feb. 25, 2003.

Take care of myself?  That’s the doc’s job“, Feb. 14-16, 2003; “Claim: docs should have done more to help woman quit smoking and lose weight” (Pa.), Sept. 18-19, 2002.

“Medical mistakes” estimates, 2001:  “Report: ‘medical errors’ study overblown“, July 27-29.  2000:‘Report on medical errors called erroneous’“, July 11; “Medical mistakes, continued“, March 7; “‘Medical errors’ study“, Feb. 28; “Against medical advice” (Clinton proposals), Feb. 22 (& see malpractice law section below). 

Mercury in dental fillings“, Jul. 16-17, 2002 (& Nov. 4-5, 2002). 

Psychiatry and allied fields, 2002:‘Mom who drugged kids’ ice cream sues’“, Nov. 1-3; “‘Patient sues hospital for letting him out on night he killed’” (Australia, psychiatric case), Oct. 16-17; “‘After stabbing son, mom sues doctors’“, May 31-June 2; “Counseling center may face closure” (Okla.), May 24-26.  2000:Killed his mother, now suing his psychiatrists“, Oct. 2; “Not my fault, I” (woman who murdered daughter sues psychiatrists), May 17; “Legal ethics meet medical ethics” (lawyers advise schizophrenic murder defendant to go off his medication for trial), Feb. 26-27 (update, Mar. 2: he’s reported to have punched a social worker twice since going off medication; Mar. 29: jury convicts him anyway); “Latest excuse syndromes” (“Internet intoxication”, etc.), Jan. 13-14; “Warn and be sued” (clinical psychologist loses confidentiality suit after warning of patient’s dangerousness), Jan. 12.  1999:Doctor sues insurer, claims sex addiction“, Oct. 13; see also personal responsibility

Artificial hearts experimental? Who knew?“, Oct. 23, 2002.

U.K.: ‘Dr. Botch’ sues hospital for wrongful dismissal“, Oct. 18-20, 2002; “Let them sue us!” (hospitals get sued if they withdraw privileges from questionable doctors), Mar. 23, 2000. 

Lawyers fret about bad image” (lawyers’ own poll finds public has much more confidence in doctors than in lawyers), Oct. 3, 2002.

‘Patient pays price for suing over cold’” (U.K.), Sept. 20-22, 2002.

‘Doctors hope fines will curb frivolous lawsuits’“, Sept. 6-8, 2002; “The doctor strikes back” (neurosurgeon countersues), June 14-15, 2000; “‘Truly egregious’ conduct” (court cites misconduct by attorney Geoffrey Fieger in suit against cardiologist), Sept. 14, 1999. 

“Accident medicine”, 2002:‘How to spot a personal injury mill’“, Aug. 19.  2001:Lawyers (and docs) block cleanup of Gotham crash fraud“, April 2.  2000:‘How do you fit 12 people in a 1983 Honda?’“, Aug. 23-25; “His wayward clients“, May 25; “Less suing = less suffering” (NEJM whiplash study), Apr. 24 (& update Jun. 26). 

‘The NFL vs. Everyone’” (medical privacy laws could restrict sports teams from commenting on players’ injuries), Jun. 13, 2002; “Promising areas for suits” (sports medicine), Dec. 7, 2000; “Doctor cleared in Lewis cardiac case“, May 15, 2000. 

‘Remove child before folding’” (AEI-Brookings study on defensive medicine), Jun. 5, 2002. 

Managed care/HMOs, 2002:‘Bad movie, bad public policy’” (John Q), Mar. 19; “Washington Post blasts HMO class actions“, Jan. 30-31.  2001:Managed care bill: Do as we say…“, Sept. 7-9 (& Dec. 6, 1999); “Contrarian view on PBR“, Aug. 17-19; “Chapman, Broder, Kinsley on patients’ rights“, June 28; “Managed care debate“, June 26; “Columnist-fest” (Morton Kondracke), June 22-24; “Docs and Dems“, June 19; “Roundup“, May 21.  2000:Patients’ Bill of Wrongs” (Richard Epstein), Oct. 27-29; “Fortune on Lerach“, Aug. 16-17; “Arm yourself for managed care debate“, April 20; “Employer-based health coverage in retreat?“, March 31-April 2.  1999: Weekend reading: columnist-fest” (John McCarron), Dec. 11-12; “Actions without class” (Wash. Post editorial: “extortion racket”), Dec. 2; “Who’s afraid of Dickie Scruggs?“, Dec. 2; “Aetna chairman disrespects Scruggs“, Nov. 18-19; “World according to Ron Motley” (world’s richest lawyer plans to sue HMOs, nursing homes, drugmakers), Nov. 1; “Deal with us or we’ll tank your stock” (managed care stock prices plunge), Oct. 21; “‘Health care horror stories are compelling but one-sided’“, Oct. 16-17; “After the HMO barbecue“, Oct. 12; “Power attracts power” (Boies joins anti-HMO effort), Sept. 30; “Impending assault on HMOs“,  Sept. 30; “Rude questions to ask your doctor” (why are you helping trial lawyers make it easier to sue health plans?), Sept. 4-6; From the fourth branch, an ultimatum” (leading trial lawyer vows to “dismantle” managed care), July 16

Hospital rapist sues hospital“, May 22-23, 2002 (& Mar. 5-7, 2003: court dismisses case). 

Bush’s big mistake on mental health coverage“, May 13, 2002. 

‘Big government ruined my long weekend’” (tide-over weekend prescribing), May 7, 2002. 

Lawyers stage sham trial aimed at inculpating third party“, Mar. 22-24, 2002. 

All things sentimental and recoverable” (veterinarians), Jan. 30-31, 2002. 

Public health follies:Infectious disease conquered, CDC now chases sprawl“, Nov. 9-11, 2001; “Letter to the editor” (activist doctors vs. gun ownership), May 18, 2001; “‘P.C., M.D.’“, Feb. 23-25, 2001. 

Bioterrorism preparedness” (laws hobble hospitals), Oct. 30, 2001. 

Letter to the editor“, Sept. 3, 2001 (can/should doctors avoid lawyers as patients?) (responses, Oct. 22). 

Clinical trials besieged“, Aug. 27-28, 2001; “Bioethicist as defendant” (Arthur Caplan, Jesse Gelsinger case), Oct. 6-9, 2000. 

‘Doctor liable for not giving enough pain medicine’“, Jun. 15-17, 2001. 

The unconflicted Prof. Daynard” (British Medical Journal and tobacco lawyer), April 21-23, 2000 (& update: letters, Jan. 2001, June 2001). 

To destroy a doctor” (lawyer’s campaign against laparoscopic surgeons), June 6, 2001. 

Mommy, can I grow up to be an informant?“, July 30, 2001; “A case of meta-False Claims” (overzealous prosecution of hospitals), Sept. 9, 1999. 

Updates” (Lawyers’ cameras in trauma ward), Dec. 26-28, 2000 (& Oct. 18). 

Promising areas for suits” (laser eye surgery), Dec. 7, 2000. 

Plastic surgery:Plastic surgeons must weigh patients’ state of mind, court says“, Aug. 15, 2000 (& June 11, 2001: she loses); “Strippers in court“, Jan. 28, 2000; “No spotlight on me, thanks” (leading breast-implant lawyer obtains gag order against lawyers for dissatisfied clients), August 4, 1999; “Never saying you’re sorry” (implants), July 2, 1999. 

Turn of the screw” (pedicle screw lawsuits), Oct. 24, 2000. 

Disabled rights roundup” (obligatory sign interpreters at doctor’s offices), Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2000; “From our mail sack: ADA enforcement vignettes” (interpreters, guide dog allergy case), May 31, 2000. 

Embarrassing Lawsuit Hall of Fame” (intimate injury; misdiagnosis charge), Aug. 14, 2000. 

Senator Lieberman: a sampler” (cost of defensive medicine), Aug. 8-9, 2000. 

And don’t say ‘I’m sorry’” (nurse’s first-person account), June 21, 2000. 

Can’t sue over affair with doctor” (court rules it was consensual), June 13, 2000. 

Jumped ahead, by court order” (residency), May 31, 2000.

‘Case’s outcome may spur more lawsuits’” (Mississippi fen-phen trial), Dec. 10, 1999; “‘Dieters still want fen-phen’“, August 18, 1999. 

Rhode Island A.G.: let’s do latex gloves next“, Oct. 26, 1999. 

Michigan high court upholds malpractice reform“, August 6, 1999. 


Other resources on medicine and litigation:

Good general links pages on health law are provided by the St. Louis University Center for Health Law Studies and by the whimsically named but highly useful Health Hippo

The Litigation Explosion, the 1991 book by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson, was excerpted in two parts by Medical Economics [part one] [part two

Marc Arkin, “Products Liability and the Threat to Contraception” (Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, February 1999). 

L. William Luria, M.D., and Dennis G. Agliano, M.D., “Abusive Medical Testimony: Toward Peer Review“, describes efforts under way in Hillsborough County, Florida, to apply principles of peer review to the control of irresponsible or unqualified forensic testimony by medical professionals. 

Walter Olson, “Lawyers with Stethoscopes: Clients Beware” (Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, 1996) (abusive litigation is also bad for the medical prognosis of claimants) 

Breast implants: see separate page

Vaccines: 

Health Hippo vaccines section. 

Peter Huber, “Dan Quayle, the Lawyers and the AIDS Babies“, Forbes, October 28, 1991 (liability and an AIDS vaccine). 

Peter Huber, “Health, Death, and Economics“, Forbes, May 10, 1993 (“investment in vaccines remains far lower than it should be, given the huge benefits that vaccines provide”) 

Walter Olson, “California Counts the Costs of Lawsuit Mania“, Wall Street Journal, June 3, 1992 (liability slowing research on AIDS vaccine). 

Malpractice law:

Daniel Kessler and Mark McClellan of Stanford won the Kenneth Arrow Award in Health Economics in 1997 for their article “Do Doctors Practice Defensive Medicine?”, which “found that when states reformed malpractice laws to put caps on damages for pain and suffering, or to eliminate punitive damages, hospital expenditures for heart disease patients were reduced by about 5 percent, yet did not leave the patients with worse health outcomes.” 

Richard Anderson, M.D., “An ‘Epidemic’ of Medical Malpractice?  A Commentary on the Harvard Medical Practice Study“, Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, July 1996 (shortcomings of famous study of medical care in New York hospitals). 

Forbes columns by Peter Huber on the issue include “Malpractice Law: A Defective Product” (1990) and “Rx: Radical Lawyerectomy” and “Easy Lawsuits Make Bad Medicine” (1997). 

Walter Olson, “A Story That Doesn?t Have a Leg To Stand On,” Wall Street Journal, March 27, 1995 (the famous “wrong-leg amputation” case). 

In 1993, in a paper given at the annual meeting of the Association for Health Services Research, Daniel Mendelson and Robert Rubin estimated that defensive medicine practices in three areas alone — pre-surgical testing, fetal monitoring and skull x-rays — probably exceeded $2 billion a year, and estimated likely savings from “aggressive malpractice reform” at more than twice that amount.  Perhaps in contrast (or perhaps not), a 1995 study of obstetrics in Washington state by L. Baldwin et al found no differences in practice between doctors who had been named in suits and those who had not. And Mark Hauser et al, “Fear of Malpractice Liability and its Role in Clinical Decision-Making” studied doctors’ reaction to hypothetical cases in which a patient’s file did or did not reveal a history of having sued physicians.  They found that in cases where an earlier suit had been reported the doctors were modestly more likely to call in other doctors, to recommend hospital admission, to document a case “by the book” rather than rely on judgment, and to predict a bad outcome.  Surprisingly, they did not order more tests or withdraw from cases more often when informed that a patient had a record of suing.  The Hauser paper notes one possible cost of an over-hasty resort to hospitalization: “In psychiatry a defensive response might include a needlessly low threshold for involuntary hospitalization, where the patient’s liberty and autonomy are, in essence, sacrificed in favor of conservative practice for the sake of self-protection.” 

The Michigan law firm of Garan, Lucow, Miller & Seward, P.C., which has a specialty in medical malpractice defense, maintains a comprehensive links page of resources in the field. 

Among reform groups, the Health Care Liability Alliance is a nationwide advocacy group whose website offers a variety of useful materials on the case for lawsuit reform. Californians Allied for Patient Protection defends the Golden State’s MICRA limits on malpractice liability.  CLYSIS is a Minnesota group working for medical liability reform.  State medical societies, such as the Medical Society of the State of New York, often maintain law-related information at their websites.