September 30 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Fire? Blame the halogen lamp is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Home fire sprinkler mandates is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Decedent, Lloyd A. Wiseman, a vice president of a San Francisco bank, died of asphyxiation and burns in a hotel room in New York City. He was in that city on bank business, and his traveling expenses, including his hotel bills, were paid by the bank. A woman, not his wife but registered as such, was found unconscious in his room and died shortly thereafter. There was evidence that they had been drinking. Sometime between 4 and 5 in the morning of his death, Wiseman telephoned the hotel manager for help because of a fire in his room. After calling the fire department, the manager went to the room but was unable to open the door with his passkey. Firemen arrived shortly thereafter and broke into the room but were too late to save the occupants. It was the opinion of the assistant fire marshal that the fire was caused by careless smoking by either one or both of the occupants.

The California Supreme Court went on to hold that Wiseman’s widow and children were entitled to death benefits from his employer because his death “was proximately caused by the employment”—a remarkable definition of proximate cause. The Court reasoned that Wiseman might have died while entertaining a legitimate guest in the hotel room (at 4 in the morning?), so the fact that the death occurred in the course of nookie was irrelevant. That seems to me to prove too much: Wiseman might have died smoking in his bed at home, too, and he just happened to be in a hotel when his bad habits killed him. But this was part of Judge Traynor’s successful remaking of tort law in the 1950′s, and the death of proximate cause is a large part why we have the mess we have today. Wiseman v. Industrial Acc. Com. (1956) 46 Cal. 2d 570.

(You can tell that this is still over fifty years ago, though, because the widow didn’t sue the hotel or cigarette company.)

Deep pockets files: 1956 edition is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

No court has found that there is a duty to make our world fool-proof or risk free. Nor is there a duty to warn of obvious consequences of foolish behavior.

In this case, we will reject the opportunity to hold that just because something could happen, failure to prevent it is unreasonable….

Nothing this court can do will change what happened. But we are obliged to ensure that the law is applied dispassionately, and in a principled way.

[Patrick at Popehat]

“[O]ur entire world is a potentially dangerous place in which to live” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Update: Insurance law Hall of Fame is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Insurance law Hall of Fame is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system