Here's the thing about why people sue. For most, it's not about the money. It's about justice.
Take the many outrageous cases of women raped and sexually assaulted by co-workers at KBR/Halliburton while on contract in Iraq. The plight of these women, who have been shut out of court because of secretive "mandatory arbitration" agreements, has been superbly explained (also here and here) by our friends at Tort Deform and today was front page news in the New York Times. KBR/Halliburton and many other big businesses make employees completely sign away their access to civil courts (aka "mandatory arbitration"), even if they are raped on the job.
Here's the dirty little secret about so-called "tort reform," like mandatory arbitration (for employees AND consumers), caps on compensation and other restrictions on victims' rights. They let criminals off the hook.
The National Center for Victims of Crime once wrote to us:
"crime victims and their families often suffer significant financial losses in the aftermath of crime. The criminal justice system does little to address the financial hardship resulting from crime."
"...Many crime victims file civil lawsuits against the perpetrator and other responsible third- parties to be compensated for the damages they have incurred as a result of the crime."
Crime victims sue to help rebuild their lives. Mandatory arbitration keeps them from doing this.
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