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| ARCHIVE -- JULY 2001 (II) |
July 20-22 -- Don't
rock the Coke machine. "A couple whose 19-year-old
son was crushed to death by a Coke machine as he rocked
it to extract a free can has filed a $1-million lawsuit in a Quebec
court" against the soft-drink company, the vending machine's makers and
operators, and the university he was attending. "Kevin Mackle of
Etobicoke,
Ont., was discovered in December, 1998, pinned beneath a toppled machine
in a residence stairwell at Bishop's University in Lennoxville, Que.
A coroner's investigation concluded that after a night drinking beer to
celebrate the end of exams, Mr. Mackle was trying to shake a soft drink
loose when the 420-kilogram machine tipped over. An autopsy found
he died of asphyxiation and had a blood-alcohol level slightly above the
legal limit for driving." (Graeme Hamilton, "Family sues Coca-Cola
over son's death", National Post, July
11).
July 20-22 -- Rand
study finds no boost in accident rates from no-fault.
A new Rand Corporation study "refutes a common criticism of no-fault auto
insurance -- that it may increase the accident rate by reducing drivers'
incentives to drive carefully. An analysis of accident trends in
the United States between 1967 and 1989 found no statistically significant
relationship between states' adoption of a no-fault system and the fatal
accident rate, overall accident rates, and other measures of driver care."
(David S. Loughran, "The Effect of No-Fault Automobile Insurance on Driver
Behavior and Automobile Accidents in the United States," RAND Institute
for Civil Justice, 2001 (summary)
(full study)).
July 20-22 -- ADA's
busiest complaint-filer. National Law Journal profiles
Miami lawyer John D. Mallah, who with his partner since 1998 "have sued
at least 740 businesses -- car dealerships, fast food franchises, drug
stores, run-down motels -- claiming that they had failed to make their
facilities accessible to the disabled, as required under the Americans
With Disabilities Act (ADA)" (see Jan.
26, Feb. 15b, March
7, May 18, 2000).
Most of the suits were brought on behalf of a activist who directs a local
disabled-rights group and who also happens to be Mallah's uncle.
"According to Mallah, most of his access cases yield $3,000 to $5,000 in
[legal] fees," which defendants pay him as a condition of settling cases.
(Bob Van Voris, "South Florida's ADA Industry",
July
9).
July 20-22 -- "Man
sues Rite Aid over stale jelly bean". From Maine:
"A Winslow man who said he broke his false teeth on a stale jelly bean
is suing Rite Aid Corp. and a Maryland candymaker,
seeking new dentures plus damages. Clayton Weeks, 62, has asked for
a total of $9,000 to replace the dentures and for pain and suffering, said
his lawyer, Gregory J. Domareki. ... 'He has lost 15 pounds ... What is
it worth not having your teeth for four months?'," Domareki said of his
client (AP/Boston Globe, July
13).
July 20-22 -- Back
from summer break. We figured our visitor traffic
would plunge over the last week and a half since we'd warned that we wouldn't
be posting updates. To our surprise it dropped only modestly, clocking
around 3,500 pages served per weekday, not so far below the 5,000 a day
clip we'd been hitting before. Thanks for your support!
(And maybe we can take more time off.)
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