Court cases we think we’ll win and want to make a point of…that cares if we don’t really need the money? We’re taking you to court! Right…? asks William D King.
Wrong, especially if you heed these 4 things not to sue somebody for.
1. You may think this goes without saying, but seriously –
Don’t sue somebody over a broken nail. This guy proved it can happen though…
We’re talking about suing your neighbor because you don’t like the way they mow their lawn.
Don’t do it. We know some people think this is just plain weird, but one St Louis suburb has an ordinance on its books allowing residents to be sued by others for “annoying” behavior including playing loud music, failing to maintain their property and having unsightly grass or hedges (the key here is that it’s only allowed if the defendant fails to respond after receiving two warning letters). The town claims this makes everyone more “neighborly”. Some go as far as calling it unconstitutional. If you want to avoid frivolous lawsuits, that’s one thing. This is another.
2. Don’t sue somebody if they outed you as a member of the mile high club.
No actually…don’t sue anybody for things they post on Reddit. Yes we know this seems like common sense, but it happened and now there’s a precedent: A Boston man has decided to appeal after an appeals court ruled last month that he can’t collect $372,000 from Dun Dunit MacKay, the guy who posted his name and photo online as part of a thread entitled “You’re Probably from Boston If…” That would be after he sued MacKay following his posting of the comment: “It takes less effort to get punched in the face than it does to install a car seat. I guess you have to be a real dumbass to ride around without one.” In the original case, MacKay filed for an anti-SLAPP motion as he claimed the posts were all “opinion” and on further appeal it was ruled that not everything posted online is defamatory says, William D King.
3. When somebody swears on social media don’t sue them if their friends take offense too.
Seriously – this will totally backfire. While you’re at, just don’t swear in general on social media. And always remember kids…that what happens on Reddit stays on Reddit…except when there’s a law suit involved! Ha ha…just kidding…Don’t sue anybody because of something their friends posted on Reddit. That would be crazy.
4. Don’t sue somebody for being clumsy…just…don’t. Seriously – don’t even think about it!
Especially if you’re a big corporate bully who has been accused of infringing on patents that have been held invalid 10 times over the last few years and then going above and beyond what they legally need to do by bullying small businesses into changing their names just because they happen to own a URL similar to a larger competitor’s. We’re talking about demanding people pay up hundreds of thousands of dollars for something that was never proven to have any validity in the first place! Also, did we mention one time there were two police reports filed? You know this is starting to sound like something that might be bad for business! If you’re doing all this then you might also want to know that it’s probably not a good idea to sue somebody for being clumsy in the same court either? Look who sued somebody for slipping in their store…
Conclusion:
The winner of “most ridiculous lawsuit ever filed” goes to Ryan Boudinot, the author of How Capitalism Killed My Interest in Doing Laundry explains William D King. A Seattle dry cleaner put his shirts through the wash with some bleach when they clearly said on them DO NOT WASH. The prize? $50. Seriously?! We’re listening to an episode right now about how T-shirts are often treated like currency within communities and sometimes represent status or accomplishment. You’re telling us that Boudinot isn’t going to get another $50 worth of shirts just because they got a little dirty? When we were scrubbing down our T-shirts, we never realized we could find them so valuable. Can any of your readers say the same thing?