Saratoga News

Don Wolfe

Don Wolfe heads the fight against frivolous lawsuits

Other groups ask voters for reform

By Clarence Cromwell

Saratoga City Councilmember Don Wolfe is spearheading a campaign by Silicon Valley Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse to convince area residents that our courts are besieged by frivolous lawsuits.

In January, CALA began a television and billboard advertising campaign to spread the word that meritless lawsuits hurt businesses, increase prices of some products--because manufacturers have to figure in legal costs--and jam the judicial system.

Wolfe said the campaign is intended to build public awareness of the issue. CALA neither proposes legislation to address the problem, nor endorses any of the state laws proposed to clean up the courtrooms, he said.

Yet CALA's campaign coincides with three anti-lawsuit-abuse measures Saratogans will consider on the March 26 ballot.

Proposition 200 proposes "pure no fault" auto insurance. Under a "no fault" plan, each driver involved in an accident files a claim against his own insurance company, regardless of who caused the accident. The proposition would block most suits related to traffic accidents.

Proposition 201 applies only to shareholders' suits against corporations. It would require losing parties--and their attorneys--to pay the winners' legal fees.

Proposition 202 attempts to limit fees that the plaintiff's attorney may collect on contingency. In such cases, the attorney often collects fees only if the case is successful.

The three measures are sponsored by Alliance to Revitalize California.

All three are opposed by Ralph Nader, Consumer Attorneys of Santa Clara County, the American Civil Liberties Union, the California Republican Assembly and other groups.

Individual attorneys disputed the seriousness of lawsuit abuse and the need for CALA's efforts.

"If I took cases that were frivolous or junk cases, I'd go bankrupt so fast I wouldn't know what hit me," said Scott Righthand, a San Francisco-based personal liability attorney. "Doing what I do, I could not afford to take cases where there are no serious injuries, [where] there are no liabilities. I think the system is going to take care of itself, because frivolous lawsuits lose."

Most lawsuits seek reasonable rewards, said Stephen Foster, president of the Consumer Attorneys of Santa Clara County. "No one makes a profit on these lawsuits. There is no such thing as a big award. You get what you lost out of your pocket. You get something for pain and suffering," he said.

Nevertheless, groups similar to CALA are forming around the state to promote debate about the issue of lawsuit abuse, Wolfe said.

CALA's six billboards, posted around San Jose, tell motorists: "Stop lawsuit abuse. We all pay. We all lose." By calling a toll-free number on the signs, interested parties can receive a "free action kit" that contains CALA's brochures and flyers.

One brochure contains anecdotes about nightmare lawsuits. A woman who cut her hand with a knife trying to separate frozen hors d'oeuvres sued the supermarket that sold her the snacks and the companies that cooked and packaged them. An embezzler sued his bank for $20 million because it transferred his stolen funds back to the rightful owner. A man sued to reverse the sale of his house, saying the previous owner didn't tell him it was haunted.

"The cost is eating us alive and destroying our system," said Gary Burke, a member of CALA and president of the Santa Clara County Manufacturing Group.

Wolfe said CALA will continue to educate voters and potential jurors about the costs of lawsuit abuse, stimulate public debate on the issue of court reform and act as watchdog over the court system and anyone who would file a frivolous suit.

CALA's members, many of whom are officials from local businesses or trade associations, contribute the group's funding. CALA's 21-member board of directors includes Gary Burke, president of Santa Clara County Manufacturing Group; Mark Lazzarini, executive director of local government affairs for the Building Industry Association; and Sharon D'Amico, chief executive officer of Santa Clara County's Better Business Bureau.

Wolfe, executive director of the new organization, worked for the Building Industry Association of Northern California until July, when the trade association dismissed him and about half of its employees during layoffs. Wolfe is also the co-host of TCI Cablevision's half-hour Monday-night TV show Issues Today. The show explains how government "affects the lives of local folks," in Wolfe's words.