by Bill Glasheen » Mon Mar 15, 1999 4:27 pm
With all due respect for the esteemed barristers in our midst, this situation makes me think of a line from William Shakespeare himself: "First thing we do, kill all the lawyers."
I know exactly what this gentleman is talking about. These days, with our litigeous society, organizations are getting incredibly paranoid about their risk. When I was at UVa, we had established programs when the risk management folks started nosing into our business. Our record made it difficult for them to tell us all to go away (although they wished we weren't there) but they could really make life hell for us. It even got down to some pretty silly crap about language. We couldn't say "The University of Virginia Uechi Ryu Karate Club." Instead, they made us say "Uechi Ryu Karate AT UVa." They made us sign these forms saying that UVa (a state school) didn't have anything to do with us, even though we used their facilities. Everybody signed waivers saying how our activity could result in injury and death, yada, yada, yada. And it wasn't just us. ALL club sports were suddenly high risk activities that could result in death. Even badmitton.
And in the mean time, the university was busy expanding the football stadium. Does this make sense? Of course not. As my mentor (a physician who often has to testify in court about medical cases) says "law often has nothing to do with logic and science."
I'm sorry about the ranting. But now and then I really get peeved at our over litigeous society. Sometimes I wish I lived in Great Britain, where the loser in a law suit has to pay the legal bills of the winning defender....or Germany, where people take responsibility for their actions, and will not consider personal stupidity a good reason to sue your neighbor.
OK, OK,....I'm off the soap box. I'm now ready to be chided by counsel. Yes, your honor, community service for contempt of court....