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terpfan1980
terpfan1980
Join Date 08/2004
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Sometimes Judges get it right...

Take that you "vexatious litigant"

December 14, 2004 8:38:50 PM from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
Wesley Pruden, Editior and Chief of The Washington Times had these words in his column today (12-14-2004) (follow link here for current column: http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/pruden.htm)
In a blue state, a little relief
By Wesley Pruden

LOS ANGELES.

    If it's still a fact that all trends originate here and spread eastward across America, transforming the culture, the politics and even the law in red states and blue, there's good news from a Los Angeles courtroom.
    U.S. District Court Judge Edward Rafeedie risked being seen as the meanest man in town when he threw out a lawsuit filed by a man in a wheelchair who accused a Chinese restaurant of restricting his mobility by incorrectly installing "grab bars" in the men's room, making it difficult to lift himself on to the toilet seat.
    The federal Disabilities Act was meant to make all Americans equal, or as close to it as law could make them, even on the throne.
    So Jarek Molski, 34, who lost his mobility in a motorcycle accident six years ago, has used the Disabilities Act aggressively, asserting his rights. In fact, Mr. Molski has filed 400 such lawsuits, against restaurants, wineries, bowling alleys, banks and just about any place he thought infringed his right to use the facilities. He has made a living at it.
    Life, as John F. Kennedy famously said, is unfair, and sometimes it's tough. On certain days in the life of Mr. Molski, such as May 20, 2003, life got brutal. Three times on that day, Mr. Molski had to use the toilet in a California restaurant, and three times he hurt himself doing it. But the trouble was not confined to the difficulties of answering nature's most urgent demand. The parking was inadequate and the food counters were too high.
    After each meal, Judge Rafeedie said, summing up the allegations in the three separate lawsuits, "Molski attempted to use the restroom, but because the toilet's grab bars were improperly installed, he injured his shoulder in the process of transferring himself from his wheelchair to the toilet. Thereafter, he was unable to wash his hands because of the lavatory's design."
    Judge Rafeedie agreed that Mr. Molski might have had a "credible" case in each instance, standing alone, but three identical injuries in three different restaurants in one day "undermined" the validity of his claims.
    "It would be highly unusual - to say the least - for anyone to sustain two injuries, let alone three, in a single day, each of which necessitated a separate federal lawsuit," the judge said. "But in [Mr.] Molski's case, May 20, 2003, was simply business as usual."
    The 398th, 399th and 400th lawsuits of Mr. Molski's unusual legal career were three coincidences too many. Judge Rafeedie decreed Mr. Molski to be a "vexatious litigant," trying to "harass and intimidate business owners," and now Mr. Molski can't file any more lawsuits under the Disabilities Act unless he gets permission from a judge.
    But that was still not all. Judge Rafeedie, who was appointed to the bench by President Reagan, ordered the San Francisco lawyer who represented Mr. Molski in several of his many lawsuits to appear before him to say why he and his law firm should not be sanctioned for aiding and abetting "abusive litigation practices."
...


... more at the linked article or try searching for Wesley Pruden on The Washington Times web site. His columns are almost always worth reading (and definitely always interesting).

Three cheers for Judge Rafeedie!!!
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terpfan1980
T_Bone4Justice
Join Date 10/2004
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Reply #1 December 14, 2004 9:05:50 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
Obviously, Mr. Adwoa has taken up a career as a "professional plaintiff."
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terpfan1980
Angloesque
Join Date 12/2003
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Reply #2 December 14, 2004 9:37:25 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
While I think the handrails ought to be fixed . . . hooray that one judge has his head screwed on correctly! I can't believe the guy's made a living off of lawsuits. THAT is what's wrong with America's legal system. Sue for change, maybe, but not for a living. Eeeeeediot.

-A.
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terpfan1980
Angloesque
Join Date 12/2003
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Reply #3 December 14, 2004 9:51:39 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
Oh, and I love that the guy's lawyer has to do homework about why he shouldn't be sanctioned. That just makes my day: Lawyers working without pay.

-A.
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terpfan1980
iamheather
Join Date 10/2001
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Reply #4 December 14, 2004 10:03:13 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
Go, judge, go.

The handrails need to be fixed for sure, but
"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice (or three times) shame on me."
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terpfan1980
whoman69
Join Date 10/2004
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Reply #5 December 14, 2004 10:04:27 PM
from PoliticalMachine ForumsPoliticalMachine Forums
While I think the handrails ought to be fixed . . . hooray that one judge has his head screwed on correctly! I can't believe the guy's made a living off of lawsuits. THAT is what's wrong with America's legal system. Sue for change, maybe, but not for a living. Eeeeeediot.


This guy isn't suing for money, he's suing to pay the world back for his disability. The judge was right to smack his ass down.
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terpfan1980
T_Bone4Justice
Join Date 10/2004
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Reply #6 December 15, 2004 9:42:10 AM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
This problem can be easily resolved if oposing council starts seeking to impose Rule 11 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. Rule 11 allows defendants of civil suits to have a case dismissed because the plaintiff and his/her lawyer filed a frivolous law suit. If the judge rules that the complaint was frivolous...both the lawyer who filed the suit and the defendant get fined. The lawyer can get into deep crap if he does this so many odd times. It is a very old rule but one that needs to be brought back into play. We don't need tort reform, we need the existing rules regarding tort law to be enforced.
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terpfan1980
Daiwa
Join Date 07/2001
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Reply #7 December 15, 2004 2:09:27 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
Wish Rule 11 was actually used. As it is, there is almost no deterrent to filing a claim, no matter how frivolous. And tort reform would become instantly moot if we adopted a "loser pays" system. Unfortunately, the plaintiff bar would pour millions into preventing the adoption of a common sense rule like that.

Cheers,
Daiwa
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