Overlawyered: Chronicling The High Cost Of Our Legal System

Liability for flu spread?

Some are anticipating that, per this line in Washington Post coverage:

Still, discussion [at a recent conference] centered on what employers could do to minimize the spread of the virus and to keep their doors open.

If a customer contracts the virus from the business “there’s an increased liability,” said Elizabeth Lewis, a partner at the law firm Cooley Godward Kronish.

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3 Comments

  • What about a lawschool that has a no-excused absences policy… Doesn’t matter if your partying or extremely sick, miss a class it counts the same. Notwithstanding some students who would do it anyway, the lawschool is essentially telling me to come in no matter how sick I am. Could that create liability when other students contract the flu?

    Do the majority of employeers have policies designed to actually keep sick workers home, or are the policies designed to limit the amount of time off a worker takes off as being sick? If I need a doctors note to take more than 3 days for the flu, but I’m not so sick as to require medical attention, should I load more stress onto the overburdened medical system by going to my doctor? Be punished for staying home while actually sick? Or go in to work and risk spreading whatever I have?

    • By Monty

  • Since the disease is so widespread, how could they possibly know where the person contracted the disease? Or would they use the same rules as they do for asbestos where all the companies that made products that contained asbestos are liable whether or not their product was actually used in the particular workplace. Thus any business that stayed open would be subject to a lawsuit.

  • Come now, Richard, isn’t it patently obvious that you contracted the disease at whatever place has the most FILTHY MONEY?

    Bob