litigation nation

[danny_galaga]

here we go again 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070926/ap_on_fe_st/odd_birthday_card_lawsuit;_ylt=AriOjYFNW7yehFGRfLTh8jyek3QF

hopefully he gets the same judge who threw out that case brought about by that FWT judge (!) concerning dry cleaning...

[Joystick Jerk]

Yeah, ---fudgesicle--- him for caring that someone is profiting off of him without his consent!

[danny_galaga]

Yeah, ---fudgesicle--- him for caring that someone is profiting off of him without his consent!

7.5 Million profit?

[vorghagen]

7.5million? Over the top, but the guys been ridiculed by his peers across the country for a photo taken WAY out of context and used without his permission, or even his knowledge, for commercial profit.
He has an absolute legitimate reason to sue. My guess is he's starting at 7.5mil hoping they'll settle out of court for maybe 2-3mil.

[ChadTower]

The farmer has a point... and he will win.  Not 7.5mil but he'll get the profits plus some substantial punitive damages.

[shardian]

He'll win the case, but most likely will settle out of court.

[mccoy178]

So where's the card?

[jbox]

Google knows all.

[Dartful Dodger]

Here's one I just heard a radio personality complaining about this morning:

Lawsuit filed against crib manufacturers

3 kids died because of this crib.  Out of the million cribs that are being recalled 65 actually failed.  The child of the woman filing the lawsuit wasn't killed or even injured, in fact her crib was one of the million-65 cribs that didn't break.

This is a valid lawsuit, and this leach and a million-65 others are going to take a percentage of the settlement away from the parents who were truly hurt by this.

[ChadTower]

And in the end, no one will really benefit except the attorneys anyway.  That sort of class action suit ends up with like 75% of the money going to legal fees.

[AtomSmasher]

Heres another very similar lawsuit from Virgin Mobile Australia using someones picture in their ads:  http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/virgin-sued-for-using-teens-photo/2007/09/21/1189881735928.html

Heres the ad: http://flickr.com/photos/sesh00/515961023/

Another article on it: http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20070921/003636.shtml

[danny_galaga]

7.5million? Over the top, but the guys been ridiculed by his peers across the country for a photo taken WAY out of context and used without his permission, or even his knowledge, for commercial profit.
He has an absolute legitimate reason to sue. My guess is he's starting at 7.5mil hoping they'll settle out of court for maybe 2-3mil.

see, thing is i will always compare any high priced litigation against the poor bastich who had the wrong leg amputed (and thus had both cut off) and got maybe 200k in his settlement. i will always think 'losing both legs through incompetent hospitals is worth 200k. now scale your woes up/down in comparison'...

[ChadTower]

I think that's a bad judgement, though... losing a limb should be worth way more than just the cost of a house.   I sure wouldn't trade my leg for a house.

[SithMaster]

"in fact her crib was one of the million-65 cribs that didn't break."
 
well lets put her in one and see what happens.

i heard that a couple had lost a child from these cribs a few years ago and nothing was done about it.  people who lost a child should be entitled not someone whose crib is fine.  thats like saying i know this crib will break but i want payment because it might.

Dont these things happen a lot with cribs?  im sure there are problem companies that people can avoid.

[Dartful Dodger]

im sure there are problem companies that people can avoid.

I would think Target or any other discount chain was an obvious place to avoid when you’re buying something you need to depend on.

I shop at Target for most of my crud, but the risk with those products being faulty is worth the money I save.  If she values her child’s life as much as she claims she would have spent the extra $10 for the reliable brand they sell at a baby store.

[Dervacumen]

Like all this crap, the problem is in expecting perfection.  Ain't never going to happen.

Whatever.

[ChadTower]

There is a whole lot of space between perfection and dead baby.

[jbox]

Tell me about it, do you know how hard it is to get the icing right? Sheesh! 

[danny_galaga]

There is a whole lot of space between perfection and dead baby.

or having the wrong leg amputated...

[shardian]

im sure there are problem companies that people can avoid.

I would think Target or any other discount chain was an obvious place to avoid when you’re buying something you need to depend on.

I shop at Target for most of my crud, but the risk with those products being faulty is worth the money I save.  If she values her child’s life as much as she claims she would have spent the extra $10 for the reliable brand they sell at a baby store.

The stuff at a baby store isn't any better - it is just overpriced.
I went in the local one, and they wanted like $500 for a basic crib. They also wanted $60 for a basic onesie and pants baby outfit.

[ChadTower]

WTF baby store were you in?  Sak's Fifth Pregnancy?

I shop at Target a lot.  It's great for some things.  Some things is it not very good for and furniture is one of its weak spots.   A crib there most likely would be made out of a manufactured wood, which of course, would not be as good as one made out of even a soft wood like pine that you'd get at a furniture or baby store.

We bought my older son's crib at Babies R Us and I think it was around $500-600... it converted into a toddler bed and now is a full bed and is still as sturdy as it was the day we bought it in the 90s.  Made of lacquered pine.

[shardian]

I ordered our crib online. It is a Storkraft and cost around $300.

The baby store was one of those stores where they sell "designer brand name" stuff. You know, the stuff noone has ever heard of. The quality of the stuff in the store was on par with anything you could get in walmart. They closed down obviously.

[ChadTower]

Heh.  That's just a crappy business.

For our second son we ordered his bedroom set from Forever Mine in QC... was a fantastic deal on solid maple convertible stuff... I think they have a website now but they didn't in 2001.  It was like $750 I think for the convertible crib, a matching dresser, and a dresser that roughly matched the other kid's stuff, plus shipping to MA.

[shmokes]

And in the end, no one will really benefit except the attorneys anyway.  That sort of class action suit ends up with like 75% of the money going to legal fees.

I don't think that's true.  Attorney's generally (always?) have their percentage set up before they start working on the case and it is normally 30-50%.  In class action suits, where the final award may be something like $100 million, judges will often limit the attorney's percentage.  The jury may come back with a $100 million dollar award and the judge will enter judgment based on the verdict and say that the attorneys only get 7 or 10% regardless of what their contract says.

[ChadTower]

I've been part of two class action suits.  In both cases the attorneys ended up with the vast majority of the award.  The suits were pretty useless.