Stop Making Injury Lawyers Look Bad
I just read on CBS News' website that a New Jersey man has filed a lawsuit against the sandwich chain Subway. Apparently, this gentleman bought a sandwich, and it turned out to have a seven-inch serrated knife baked into it. He bit into the part containing the knife's handle, but didn't swallow any of it.
He says that he got a stomache ache for a few hours, and that the knife "could've slashed" the side of his mouth.
It's certainly possible for reasonable lawyers to reach different conclusions on any given set of facts. However, I don't think I would have agreed to get involved in this man's case. I believe that news stories like this do more to undermine the civil justice system than any amount of insurance industry lobbying or tort reform.
I support the right of individuals to seek redress when they are injured by another's carelessness. I agree that there is no reason a customer should be sold food with a dangerous item in it. I also think its ridiculous to file a lawsuit over a tummyache, and the possibility that you could have been injured and weren't. This doesn't sound like anything that couldn't be fixed by a refund of the purchase price and a bottle of Pepto-Bismol.
I think its a shame that a big portion of the general public (and therefore the jury pool) forms their impression about personal injury lawyers and injury plaintiffs based on stories like this one. It isn't fair that victims of serious or catastrophic injuries will be stereotyped based on the media hype given to someone who wasn't even hurt, but filed a lawsuit anyway.
