I write this with trepidation as I have friends in the legal profession, but they are not part of the problem I see. Our legal system has been flipped, twisted and tied in knots to the point of severely damaging our economy and society.
Today, I will speak to the trial lawyers about product and service lawsuits, in particular class action suits. I am not saying none are legitimate, but many are not. The time and money they suck out of the economy is astounding and frequently counterproductive.
I have received a postcard saying I am part of a class that is eligible for payments from Blue Cross Blue Shield because they colluded to reduce competition. The settlement is $2.67 billion. The part that is really difficult is that the lawyers will get $667.5 million and another $100 million will go to “other” expenses.
Who pays all the money in these cases? You and I. Ultimately the individuals in any society pay all the bills, including taxes and settlements.
As a customer of the insurance companies in the suit, my and others’ premiums pay all their costs.
The irony is we paid the supposedly higher premiums and now our premiums will pay the settlement or the companies will go out of business. But the lawyers involved will come out well ahead.
I am sure some will say these big companies pay their executive class way too much, and I agree. But that is a different issue.
I don’t know how many legal folks were involved, but I guarantee their fees will fund even more lawsuits like this. There is a whole industry in this country revolving around lawsuits and settlements that build mansions and buy yachts and fund more lawsuits. And the trial lawyer lobby has extraordinary money giving them undue lobbying power and influence in Congress.
Other countries do not handle these problems with continual lawsuits.
Our Congress and legislatures need to develop a system that protects customers from collusion and regulates or breaks up monopolies and quasi-monopolies to reduce costs for everyone. Costs that make a small group stupidly wealthy and have a disrupting influence on the economy.
David Fenn
Curtis
