WHOWEARS THE PANTS? LADY JUSTICE!
How One Judge Lost a Frivolous Lawsuit and His Dignity
After losing an article of clothing from a dry cleaner, most would say “c’est la vie” and move on. At most, someone might leave a bad review and ask for a few dollars to cover the loss, but for one administrative law judge, that wasn't enough. He decided instead to launch an all-out legal battle. Roy Pearson, a Washington, D.C. judge at the time, sought $54 million to cover the loss of his pants after his dry cleaner lost them. He argued that the “same-day service” sign located in the window of the dry cleaners meant the company had to provide same-day service. However, Pearson never specified a specific time he needed his clothes returned. He also insisted that the “satisfaction guaranteed” sign meant the cleaners had to satisfy a customer’s wishes without limit. Based on those arguments, he claimed the signs were fraudulent. After the initial allegations, the dry cleaners scoured their business to find the pants and, to their credit, found the judge’s trousers untarnished. Even so, Pearson argued that he didn’t need to prove the pants were lost or damaged to satisfy his “satisfaction guaranteed” claim.
Unfortunately the judge, the court found his position to be ridiculous and ordered him to pay the dry cleaner’s attorneys’ fees. In response, Pearson sought that his own attorneys’ fees be covered to oppose this motion. for
In the end, Pearson did pay the dry cleaner’s legal fees, but the case isn’t the only thing he lost. The verdict also cost the judge his job and any semblance of professional dignity. Ten years after the case closed, the District of Columbia Board on Professional Responsibility sought a 90-day suspension. As the board put it, Pearson “failed to conduct an objective appraisal of the legal merits of his position. He made and continues to make arguments that no reasonable attorney would think had even a faint hope of success on the legal merits.” From a legal standpoint, we’d call this judge’s behavior “dissatisfaction guaranteed.”
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: LORRAINE BEAHAN
Nearly 20 Years of Service to Families
Lorraine Beahan has worked at Hegwood Law Group for the better part of 20 years. Before she settled in Houston, she lived in Austin and also the states of Oklahoma, Hawaii, and Florida. While living in Florida, Lorraine earned her paralegal degree. Then in 2000, she moved to Houston, where she worked at several different law firms before landing at Hegwood Law Group in 2002. She says that right from the beginning, she and our founder, Kim, worked well together. She has stayed all these years because she has felt supported at Hegwood Law Group. It is still that way today. “It’s a team effort,” Lorraine said when asked about the firm’s culture. “Everybody here works together.” Although Lorraine has filled a wide variety of roles at the firm — billing, probate, and family law, to name just a few areas of expertise — today she works as our
Senior Paralegal and Medicaid Coordinator. She says she has always loved helping the elderly and is happy in her current role. “I get to know the client through their families,” she said. “I really care what happens to them.” As the Medicaid Coordinator, Lorraine is responsible for helping clients through the
entire process — making the decision to admit their loved one to a long-term care facility and all the other decisions and challenges that come with it, even loss of life.
Outside of work, Lorraine enjoys weight lifting and spending time with her two grandchildren, a 4-year-old and a 1-year-old.
If your family needs assistance caring for your eldest members, give us a call at 281- 218-0880 to see how Lorraine — in partnership with one of our attorneys, of course — can help.
2 HEGWOOD LAW GROUP
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