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Compensation

D

davidmurphy

Oct 2, 2006
306
1
Dublin, Ireland
#1
Here's an idea.
What if the courts stopped paying out financial compensation to people for emotional trauma?

Think you call it punitive damages in the US.

Someone could get money if something happened that caused them to lose money, i.e., had to pay medical expenses, couldn't work anymore.

If they had emotional damages counselling or some sort of therapy could be organised that would be paid for by the guilty party.

If it was decided that the guilty party needed to be punished further they could be fined but the money could go to an appropriate charity.

I just don't see why people need to make money because something bad happens to them.
The idea of compensation should be, IMO, to get the person back to the same condition they were in before an accident, not to leave them financially better off.

There is a popular misconception that the claims are paid by big companies who can easily afford it.
The claims are paid by anyone who pays for any kind of insurance. That's you & me folks!

I know this probably won't be a popular idea & I certainly don't mean to offend anyone who has recieved compensation.
Just looking for some other peoples thoughts on this.
 
#3
bassfacekevin said:
hear hear!

I think that people have become all too "lawyer happy" these days. I have heard of several people saying "I didn't help because I didn't want to get in trouble in case I aggravated the situation." Terrible mentality.

~K
Click to expand...


In fairness it's generally not a good idea to get involved in an arguement between a couple.
Have seen people go to the aid of a girl who looks like she's being hassled by a guy only to have her turn around & say "Get the heck away from my boyfriend!".

Sometimes you just can't win.
 
#4
I've seen the disturbing mentality from a few people that I know which indicates that they almost wish something bad would happen to them (car accident, injury) so they can sue the bejeezus out of somebody and be "made" for the rest of their life! :eek:

Personally, I can't fathom that. I think that saying there should be no such thing as punitive damages is a little extreme, but typically there are repercussions for the guilty party beyond even the financial hit that will make them think twice before repeat offending.
 
#5
SuperDuck said:
I think that saying there should be no such thing as punitive damages is a little extreme, but typically there are repercussions for the guilty party beyond even the financial hit that will make them think twice before repeat offending.
Click to expand...


What about the idea of a fine that is donated to a relevant charity?
This way the guilty party still gets punished & something is done to benefit society.

(I'm not a hippy despite how that sounds!:) )
 
#6
It might work, they don't pay for emotional trauma around here unless it's extremely severe and it seems like theres less of so-called stupid cases in the court - actually quite opposite, people can be a bit afraid of the justice system and tend to try to settle the matters outside court.

Not too much chance for sueing a company selling too hot coffee, either, since only thing that companies would get is a warning from a inspector and maybe a very small fine if they have somehow managed to do something extreme recklessly.
 
#7
My solution would be for the person suing to be forced to pay all legal and court fees if he loses. That way, the only people that will sue would be those who believe they have a solid case.

The reason something like my idea won't happen any time soon is because it would be the Trial Lawyer Associations out of business.
 
#10
I just wish people would worry more about what they deserve rather than what they're legally entitled to.
It's very difficult for someone who works for minimum wage to turn down a chance to get €10,000 but it's not free money as a lot of people seem to think.
We all end up paying.
 
#11
davidmurphy said:
In fairness it's generally not a good idea to get involved in an arguement between a couple.
Have seen people go to the aid of a girl who looks like she's being hassled by a guy only to have her turn around & say "Get the f**k away from my boyfriend!".

Sometimes you just can't win.
Click to expand...

My Dad's a cop and he's told me that when going into a domestic assault scenario there is a similar chance of the guy trying to fight the police as the woman who's been beaten. Basically, he said that is one of the worse complaints to get called to.
 
#13
Ericman197 said:
My solution would be for the person suing to be forced to pay all legal and court fees if he loses. That way, the only people that will sue would be those who believe they have a solid case.
Click to expand...

This would help prevent spurious cases being brought to court but I don't think even people who have solid cases should end up better off after an accident than they were before.




Earlier I sounded like a hippy, now I sound like a Fascist!
Hopefully I'm somewhere in the middle!
 

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