Common Misconceptions About the Necessity for Tort Reform

There are some common misconceptions about lawsuits in the United States.

For years, people in the medical field and some legislators have been saying that we are in the midst of a medical malpractice crisis. And similar alarm in the last few decades about frivolous personal injury lawsuits has lead to many states passing tort reform laws. States have been capping the damage awards that can be handed down. But much of this understanding has been fabricated by private public relations firms.

“Frivolous lawsuits” is another term that people hear tossed around quite often, and is cited as one of the reasons why tort reform is so necessary. Public relations firms have been quite successful at getting people to believe that frivolous lawsuits are an epidemic in this country, even going so far as to disseminate false information about real cases.

For instance, the famous McDonalds case where the woman was burned by the hot coffee. This is a real case where the woman sustained serious burns over a large portion of her body, a jury saw the evidence, and awarded her $3 million. But most people see this as an example of a frivolous lawsuit – an example of someone who caused their own injuries and then tried bilking money from a big company. Some made claims like, if she was driving and drinking coffee then she was not being careful enough. Coffee is supposed to be hot, why was she not paying more attention?

But the facts of this case are very different from what people realize. Stella Liebeck bought coffee at a McDonald’s drive thru in 1992. When the burn happened she was not driving, she was in the passenger seat, and the car she was driving was parked in the parking lot of the restaurant. She removed the lid in order to add cream and sugar but the cup tipped over and spilled the whole cup of coffee over her legs and thighs. She sustained third degree burns that required extensive skin grafts.

At the time that this happened it was McDonald’s policy for coffee to be served at dangerous temperatures that could seriously burn a person. And hers was not the first complaint, burn, or other injury to be reported. There were hundreds of letters of complaint sent to the company after people were burned by hot coffee.

Liebneck and her family were only offered $800 by McDonald’s after they sent a letter explaining the situation. Her medical expenses were more than $20,000 so the case proceeded to trial. The jury heard all of the evidence, which included the company admitting that they served coffee at this dangerous temperature and that they had known about the danger but never warned customers, and the testimony of an expert witness who testified that there were billions of cups of coffee served, so the hundreds of injuries did not matter. The jury thought that the actions of the company were so careless and egregious that they decided $3 million in punitive damages was appropriate, but a judge reduced the ruling by 80 percent. The case was eventually settled by the two parties for a confidential amount.

This is just one example of a case that demonstrates the common misconception about lawsuits in this country. The McDonald’s case is an example of personal injury, but this is a highly contentious issue for a variety of different types of law, including medical malpractice. Currently many states have either capped damage awards or would like to institute caps for medical malpractice cases, arguing that doctors are too afraid of lawsuits to do their jobs. But the truth is that people who have been injured by malpractice or have been harmed because of another person’s negligence should have their day in court. Negligent practitioners should be held accountable for any negligence on their part.

Medical Malpractice Attorney

If you or a loved one have been injured by medical malpractice, contact a Missouri medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. You deserve justice.

To schedule a free and private consultation with a St. Louis medical malpractice attorney, call the Zevan and Davidson Law Firm at (314) 588-7200 or fill out our online contact form.

photo credit: david_shane