When Frivolous Lawsuits Aren’t So Frivolous At All

By Author: Shiela Byron
Total Articles: 29
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Your Arizona personal injury lawyer would probably tell you so many stories about personal injuries that would be sneered at as frivolous yet in the end turned out to be a candidate for the courtroom drama of the century. Arizona personal injury lawyers at Johnson law group alone could probably attest to too many cases that began as too petty to file but became classic examples of personal injury cases.

The McDonald’s coffee issue was once called the most frivolous case of all. People blasted it for being petty, calling it stupid as everybody knows how hot coffee is as well as epitomizing America’s obsession with suing. But there were so many elements about the case not many people know about that change the facet of the case.

Ask your Arizona personal injury lawyer about the aspects of the case. And he can better explain to you the degree of the coffee that was too high and could cause third degree burns.

Preconceived Frivolous Case #1

Cities are being sued by their constituents for incidents of personal injury cases all the time. Even in Phoenix, there are probably personal injury cases like ...
... that. This case, though, has caught the public’s fancy as the town went bankrupt right after paying the settlement.

The story goes that a resident of Reeds Spring was shopping in town when she tripped on what appeared to be a pothole. Blaming the small town for her accident, she sued the city for personal injuries. Because of lapsed insurance payments, the small city of Reed Spring, Missouri declared bankruptcy when they lost the case.

The first thing you would think is this is the most frivolous thing you have ever heard. What has the city got to do with forces of nature that cause potholes? And doesn’t she have any common sense to watch out for them?

We judge what we don’t understand. Like the Hot Coffee incident, there are so many elements about the case that will eventually make us sympathize with the girl. 1) The injury required major surgery on her ankle 2) the pothole was covered in grass on a sidewalk where you should be standing if you want to cross the street legally and 3) cities and towns are usually covered by insurances for personal injury cases like this, it’s just that Reeds Spring didn’t pay theirs.

Preconceived Frivolous Case #2

This is exactly why cases have been deemed innocent until proven guilty, and although the accuser won his case in court, he lost it in the public eye on account of sloppy journalism.

A famous news program reported about a guy who sued a ladder company because he set up his ladder on frozen manure thinking it was solid ground. When the day became warmer the manure softened and down came the ladder along with the guy.

The truth is the ladder broke. It was supposed to be able to take in 1000lbs of weight. But at less than 450lbs, it simply broke. It had nothing to do with manure.

Preconceived Frivolous Case #3

Called “The Fat Man and the Lawnmower Case”, the story that circulated was about an obese man with coronary issues who suffered a heart attack while trying to power up a lawnmower. He then sued the lawnmower company.

Truth: there was neither a fat man nor any coronary disease. The man was a medical doctor who sued the company for a defective product.

We’re pretty sure your Arizona personal injury lawyer knows about all these cases.

For a Personal Injury Lawyer Mesa AZ, there is only one name you can trust - Johnson Law Group - for personal injury, malpractice law, and Arizona Car Accident Lawyers.