FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: PETER BYLSMA
PHONE: 310-795-8532
October 1, 2007
(Los Angeles, CA) – Los Angeles Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse (LACALA) is observing
Lawsuit Abuse Awareness Week (LAAW) October 1-5 with the announcement of "LA CALA's
Most Outrageous Lawsuits of 2007," naming the most ridiculous and costly lawsuits of the year.
LA CALA's most outrageous suits of the year include the infamous case of the judge who sued
a dry cleaner for $54 million over the loss of his pants, the famous Los Angeles Fire Department dog food lawsuit, Dan Rather's $70 million lawsuit against CBS, a police officer who sued the New York Police Department for allowing his wife - also a police officer - to carry a gun, parents suing a school district over a bad grade, a lawsuit over a screening of Brokeback Mountain, a $10 million lawsuit over a McDonald's cheeseburger, a lawsuit by a student to overturn a suspension after he got caught hacking into his teacher's computer for test scores and a suit filed by a woman over perfume in the workplace.
LACALA is inviting citizens to visit their web site at www.losangelescala.org to vote for the most
outrageous suit of the year. Voters who select the lawsuit voted most outrageous of the year
will be eligible to win $500 in a random drawing. LAAW is a nationally recognized annual event
in which LA CALA and groups throughout the nation inform consumers of the human and
financial costs of lawsuit abuse, encourage legislators to enact common-sense reforms to our
legal system, encourage people to serve on juries and help ensure the legal system is used for
justice, not greed.
"These lawsuits are shameful examples of excess and greed," said Peter Bylsma, executive director of Los Angeles CALA. "Lawsuit abuse takes resources away from those who need and deserve justice and in the end costs all of us money." LA CALA is not alone in its concern as local communities have issued proclamations in support of Lawsuit Abuse Awareness week.
Los Angeles Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse is a nonprofit, grassroots public education organization dedicated to serving as a watchdog over the legal system and those who would seek to abuse it for undeserved gain. For more information, visit www.losangelescala.org.
