Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/03/26

[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]

Subject: RE: [Leica] A Land Without Lawyers
From: Marc James Small <msmall@infi.net>
Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2002 16:35:58 -0500
References: <NABBLIJOIFAICKBIEPJJGEMBPEAA.darkroom@ix.netcom.com>

At 03:18 PM 3/26/02 -0500, B. D. Colen wrote:
>Ain't THAT the truth! There are a whole lot more lawyers defending sweat
>shop owners, and working to overturn the various laws designed to protect us
>from unsafe drugs and rotten food than there are lawyers trying to protect
>us.

BD

No, you are wrong on this point.  It is the plaintiff's lawyers who are, by
suing those "deep pocket" corporations, trying to keep them honest.  In the
end, this would be about 1/3 of active lawyers, as opposed to 1/6 in
government service and another 1/10 or so in public policy groups ranging
from Greenpeace to the Liberty Lobby.  The government lawyers and some of
the public-policy sorts are the only other ones attempting to maintain our
regulatory grid.  In terms of raw numbers, a lot more lawyers are working
to enforce these laws than to tear them down -- the guys attempting end
runs on regulation and legal obligations are the company's lawyers, either
internal or outside counsel, most of whom work for medium or large firms.
(The large firm lawyers are the best paid of all attorneys and are the ones
with hand-tailored suits and private-club memberships, though, as with most
generalities, there certainly are exceptions.)

One of the underpinnings of the Common Law system shared by the US and
Commonwealth is the reality that companies will do more to provide healthy
conditions if they know that they can be made to pay when someone is harmed
by their action or inaction than they will under a regulatory scheme.  (A
company with money can always corrupt a regulatory scheme either by
co-option or bribery or intimidation -- have you ever noticed the numbers
of former utility company executives who end up serving on utility-rate
commissions, for instance, or the number of former real-estate types
working as building inspectors?  Even where there is no actual corruption
there certainly is an "appearance of impropriety".)

I'm simply suggesting that some balance should be kept in this discussion.
And, in the end, social problems can only be solved by societal solutions.
Government can no more cause folks to relent on their lust to file lawsuits
than government could impose a recognition of the need for neutral civil
rights enforcement until the USian populace were ready for this.

Marc


msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +276/343-7315
Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir!

- --
To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html

In reply to: Message from "Austin Franklin" <darkroom@ix.netcom.com> (RE: [Leica] A Land Without Lawyers)