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 or 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 that 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 that 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 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 for 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. Ultimately, Pearson paid 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.”
W ho W ears the P ants ? L ady J ustice !
a well - deserved $500,000 win
HOW WE HELPED OUR CLIENT GET HALF A MILLION IN WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
Our client was working hard to provide for her family when the worst happened.
In cases like hers, compensation generally pays for surgery, hospitalization, medical supplies, prosthetic devices, and prescriptions as needed. Third-party lawsuits can also seek additional compensation for personal expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages. Her injuries were severe, and we fought hard to get her the money she needed. We were able to settle her case for $527,897.74 — more money than she had ever hoped for and enough to put her life back on track. Workplace injuries like hers happen more often than you’d think. The Occupational Safety and Health Act ensures that employers provide a safe and healthy working environment, yet more than 6 million workers are injured or become sick on the job each year in the U.S. If a workplace injury happens to you or someone you know, the experienced lawyers on our team can help. Call 843- 535-8000 to schedule a consultation today!
As a longshoreman, her job was to load and unload cargo from ships. It was difficult, honest labor and she was proud to do it. Everything was going well until, during one of her many shifts, She was working next to a forklift with a bag extension. Before she could react, she was pinned painfully between the lift equipment and the bags, unable to escape. She survived the ordeal, but it left her with a debilitating injury to her spinal cord, chronic pain in her neck, arms, chest, back, shoulders, and dysesthesia in both hands. She couldn’t move normally and was in pain even after surgery. Because her injuries came as a result of insufficient health and safety protections at her workplace, we were certain we could help her win the compensation she deserved.
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