Lawsuits you didn't know you paid for

This is exactly what nauseates me about American jurisprudence. Anyone can sue for anything at anytime and it's costing us millions. While I support fining for frivilous lawsuits some argue that this has the danger of making justice something that only the rich can afford. This argument is pure bunk. There is something called common sense and most Americans need a very healthy does of it right now!

Brandon, OK you have pointed out one end of the bell curve by estimating the cost of frivolous lawsuits. Now, how about pointing out the other end of how much we save by other lawsuits that benefit the consumer.

"No matter who you are or what you do, lawsuit abuse affects your life in numerous ways.... Paying more for prescription drugs, doctors' visits, groceries or household items in general? Some of those higher costs can be traced directly to lawsuits or their threat."

Talking about ridiculous lawsuits such as Mr. Jack Ass's is one thing - but to directly tie that in to medical costs? You really reveal your agenda, Mr.Barker. Please, please ---- ramble on about the costs of lawsuits on an individual basis, based on case type. Do this rather than foolishly blanketing all suits, including case types that have an everyday legitimacy.

Really, how DO you jump from Jack Ass to incresed medical costs? You'd have to be a jack ass yourself to do such a thing. Take your agenda elsewhere....

Re read the article. He's not tying Medical cost directly to Mr.Ass, but what he IS doing is pointing out a very important point; lawsuit abuse DOES affect all aspects of your life. If that MORON took too man pain killers because th bottle said take one to two vicodin every four hours AS NEEDED, and he took the AS NEEDED part to mean "it's not working enought, I need to take two more" and ends up over dosing, sues his doctor, the pharmacy, and his health care, where the hell do you think the raise in health coverage is comming from? That and those who go to the doctor for the sake of going to the doctor.

The point is, you need to read and understand something before you replay with attacks against the author of an article, especially one who is only looking out for the consumers. Would you have known this information otherwise? I think not.

Steve, there is little cost saved on the part of the consumer from lawsuits. Businesses do not change their products because of a lawsuit; rather they change their product based on market performance.

Frivolous lawsuits cost our country tens of billions of dollars a year. In principle, I cannot accept a burglar suing the people he/she is robbing. That is wrong on many levels, and if our courts were not clogged with these suits, the judicial system would move more quickly. As tax-payers, we all pay the price. I can think of many other worthwhile ways to spend an extra $1,200 per year. If this figure includes all family members, my family pays $6,000 per year for unnecessary lawsuits, which is high for a middle-income family. We could do a lot with the extra money!

Not a fan of the frivolous lawsuit!