[Dr K]

When I was a GI Fellow at Temple, an uninsured, drunk man was riding a bicycle down the middle of Broad Street at 2 AM, swerved, and hit a car. He was hospitalized for months (for free), did "reasonably well" despite his multiple injuries, and was discharged. He then sued the driver, the city, the hospital, every person whose name was on his chart, AND...the Schwinn Bicycle company, for not having a label on the bicycle warning against riding drunk. The kicker is that he'd stolen the bicycle! I don't know if any of the plaintiffs settled, but I know the hospital vowed to use all their resources to fight it.

[joep]

Why would anyone settle with him over that ??

[Dr K]

Because he had no resources, so was not going to pay your court costs if he lost. Other than the bad precedent, cheaper to pay a couple of thousand dollars than to go to trial. Doctors have been long fighting with malpractice insurance companies not to settle even for low dollars because we're the ones who have to live with what counts as a malpractice suit decided against us.

[HoodPin]

The world is a vampire........and many of the vampires are lawyers.

[joep]

Originally Posted by Dr K

Because he had no resources, so was not going to pay your court costs if he lost. Other than the bad precedent, cheaper to pay a couple of thousand dollars than to go to trial. Doctors have been long fighting with malpractice insurance companies not to settle even for low dollars because we're the ones who have to live with what counts as a malpractice suit decided against us.

I don't know what to say about that.

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
- Edmund Burke (1729-1797)

[HateDCRoads]

The English legal system has an elegant solution for this - loser always pays courts costs and fees for BOTH sides.

[Dr K]

Originally Posted by HateDCRoads

The English legal system has an elegant solution for this - loser always pays courts costs and fees for BOTH sides.

Good luck collecting from a street person (or any lawyer would be involved in a case like this)...

[good hands]

Originally Posted by Dr K

Good luck collecting from a street person (or any lawyer would be involved in a case like this)...

Than no lawyer would take the case. Precisely Hatedcroads point.

[Dr K]

Originally Posted by good hands

Than no lawyer would take the case. Precisely Hatedcroads point.

It's amazing what cases some lawyers will take. You are very wrong, unfortunately

[HoodPin]

Originally Posted by Dr K

It's amazing what cases some lawyers will take. You are very wrong, unfortunately

But......less so if "loser always pays courts costs and fees for BOTH sides."

That's why frivolous court cases are much fewer in England, which was John's point.