April 16, 201412 yr I am sure there are a lot of pros and cons but thinking of the big picture should all settlement amounts be public record? In other words, no non-disclosures when it comes to money. I realize this will make some individual cases more difficult but I believe it serves a high good moving forward. Anyone? Agree? Disagree? Pros? Cons?
April 16, 201412 yr I am sure there are a lot of pros and cons but thinking of the big picture should all settlement amounts be public record? In other words, no non-disclosures when it comes to money. I realize this will make some individual cases more difficult but I believe it serves a high good moving forward. Anyone? Agree? Disagree? Pros? Cons? Anything that encourages settlements is good for the already jam-packed court system. Won't an automatic disclosure prevent a lot of settlements, thereby further jamming the courts with cases that don't belong there? There are plenty of settlements that occur before a lawsuit is filed. Would those then have to be disclosed somewhere as well? If a court isn't yet involved then what is the nature of that disclosure?
April 16, 201412 yr I see the postives and negatives. I think GetSlow's point make me side with the fact that allowing non-disclosure helps free up the court system.
April 16, 201412 yr If I sued an agency and won a sizable award, I don't think I would want it known to protect myself.
April 16, 201412 yr Author Anything that encourages settlements is good for the already jam-packed court system. Won't an automatic disclosure prevent a lot of settlements, thereby further jamming the courts with cases that don't belong there? There are plenty of settlements that occur before a lawsuit is filed. Would those then have to be disclosed somewhere as well? If a court isn't yet involved then what is the nature of that disclosure? I would say no court involvement, no disclosure. To your first point, it may jam things up at first but in the end I believe it would streamline the process. I think you would see many more settlements without going to court and everyone adapts to change. Most important, I think disclosure would make everyone think twice before screwing someone else over. Additionally, I think businesses and companies defending themselves would think twice before offering some ridiculous low ball number when they know the suit is worth much more to the victim.
April 16, 201412 yr Author If I sued an agency and won a sizable award, I don't think I would want it known to protect myself. People win the lottery all the time, you will live.
April 16, 201412 yr I would say no court involvement, no disclosure. To your first point, it may jam things up at first but in the end I believe it would streamline the process. I think you would see many more settlements without going to court and everyone adapts to change. Most important, I think disclosure would make everyone think twice before screwing someone else over. Additionally, I think businesses and companies defending themselves would think twice before offering some ridiculous low ball number when they know the suit is worth much more to the victim. That last paragraph was part of my thinking. Defense attorneys have every reason to drag out a case. Unlike the plaintiffs' lawyers, who get paid a lot on commission in the types of cases we're talking about, these guys who work at big law firms get paid hourly and make more money the more pleadings they file, depositions they take, and motion hours they send their junior associates to. I'd be curious to see what the civil defense bar's take on such a move would be considering it might be something that, for once, actually made their lives more difficult.
April 16, 201412 yr I say no... Seems like to me if all settlements were public record, you would have more cases of people trying to get money from situations like these.
April 16, 201412 yr Author I say no... Seems like to me if all settlements were public record, you would have more cases of people trying to get money from situations like these. No you wouldn't, you either have a case or you don't.
April 16, 201412 yr Author That last paragraph was part of my thinking. Defense attorneys have every reason to drag out a case. Unlike the plaintiffs' lawyers, who get paid a lot on commission in the types of cases we're talking about, these guys who work at big law firms get paid hourly and make more money the more pleadings they file, depositions they take, and motion hours they send their junior associates to. I'd be curious to see what the civil defense bar's take on such a move would be considering it might be something that, for once, actually made their lives more difficult. I think we are thinking the same thing here. The big problem I see with change is the people "in charge" of deciding the change could have numerous conflicts of interest. To me, this should be about right and wrong, only right and wrong don't pay as well as secret deals do.
April 16, 201412 yr People win the lottery all the time, you will live. Completely different scenario
April 16, 201412 yr To me, this should be about right and wrong, only right and wrong don't pay as well as secret deals do. They never have.
April 16, 201412 yr I sue (hypothetical) the Anderson County parks department because I was hurt at a park in large part because of their negligence. I win $100,000. I might not want people in my community knowing I won that, simply because it could cause bad blood towards me and I could possibly become a target of hate, ridicule...maybe even worse. There are millions of examples one could use.
April 16, 201412 yr People win the lottery all the time, you will live. Not every state makes their lottery winners public. Ohio is a state that gives the winner a choice.
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