We've all heard about them. Lawsuit abuse and large jury awarded compensation settlements for lawsuits that leave many scratching their head – how did these cases go to trial or even get to the court system? Below is a collection of some of the silliest lawsuits, costliest lawsuits, most frivolous lawsuits and downright dumbest lawsuits ever. One has to wonder if common sense exists anymore...
Unfortunately, silly lawsuits are overwhelming many state and federal courts. Consider Case No. 9650302 in Michigan where the prisoner sued the State of Michigan stating that the food in prison was causing his flatulence problem.
A man sued Microsft claiming that Internet Explorer(IE) failed to delete his history of bomb building sites he visited. He claims that he set is software to delete his browsing history after five (5) days, but it failed to do so. Plus any day beyond is supposed to be permanently deleted, and not recoverable. While some of the claim might be legitimate, the plaintiff was assured by Circuit City, whom he purchased the computer from in 2004, that the installed Internet Explorer, Windows XP, and other security programs would keep his information safe and secure from prying eyes
So what was his complaint? Based on tips that he had bomb making materials at his home, the FBI raided this guy's home and found incriminating files older than 5 days old on his computer and arrested him on the spot.
Why not sue Circuit City while you're at it. What an idiot – for more than just the Microsoft suit!
A young man of 19 located in Los Angeles, CA was awarded $74,000 (plus medical expenses!) when his neighbor accidentally ran over his hand with his car. The young man was unaware that there was someone behind the wheel of the car…while he was trying to steal the hubcap's off his neighbor's car!
A woman in Austin, TX was awarded $80,000 after she broke her ankle tripping over a toddler who was running inside a furniture store she was shopping in. The store owners were very surprised by the verdict because the toddler running in the store was the woman's son.
A woman purchased a new 32-foot Winnebago motor home from a dealership in Oklahoma. On way home from a football game she drove on to the freeway she set the cruise control….and left her seat to go and make herself a sandwich! Needless to say the motor home veered off the freeway and crashed. The woman sued Winnebago for, are you ready….not writing in the owner's manual that a person can't actually leave the driver's seat while the cruise control was on. A jury Oklahoma awarded her $1,750,000 PLUS a brand new motor home. And Winnebago updated their owner's manuals because of this judgment.
Checking to see if you are paying attention. This has been proven to be false: http://www.snopes.com/autos/techno/cruise.asp
AutoNation, one of the nation's largest auto retailers, and is headquartered in Florida, The company has 66 car dealership operations in Florida with over 7,000 employees statewide.
In this video you will see AutoNation's General Counsel, Jon Ferrando, explain how AutoNation was faced with a frivolous lawsuit - a situation where no one was harmed but it still cost the company more than $1.5 million in legal fees! Including a $1 million payout to the plaintiff's lawyers to settle the case. And we wonder why costs are going up!
One of our esteemed fellow American sued Michael Jordan because, are you ready for it…he claims that Michael Jordan looks like him and this causes people everywhere to approach him.
He sued not only Michael Jordan, but also the founder of Nike, Phil Knight, for $832 million dollars! That will buy a lot of shoes!
And guess which lawyer represented this guy? Himself!
So what do you think…..is he Michael Jordan's doppelganger?
Many of us are avid Facebook users are are familiar with a Facebook poke. But did you know a poke could land you in jail? That's exactly what happened to Shannon D. Jackson of Hendersonville, TN. She is facing the real possibility of jail time.
Jackson was arrested and on September 25th, and a bond set at $1,500, after she poked someone on Facebook. The problem? It allegedly violates the terms of an order of protection set by the court : "no telephoning, contacting or otherwise communicating with the petitioner."I can't believe I am even writing about this. If found guilty, Jackson could face some even more jail time! How much time? It is possible she will receive 29 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. The Tennessean writes:
"According to the affidavit filed in Sumner County General Sessions Court, Jackson is accused of using the "poke" option on Facebook to contact a Hendersonville woman, thus violating the terms of the order of protection…Hendersonville police have made copies of the page in which the alleged victim is shown to be "poked," according to the affidavit."
Ok people are really too sensitive these days. Cyber poking, come on!
These cases beg the questions:
Give us your opinion. Have other urban legend lawsuits you want to debunk, add them here?