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Am I THAT Out of Touch?

By Christopher Annunziata

In the past few weeks, I’ve run into some head scratching cases in the small claims court.  Cases that make me wonder, “Have I completely overestimated what the average lay person understands about the law?”

I’m not talking about the Rule Against Perpetuities, ERISA, or arcane sections of the Tax Code.

I’m talking about one of the most basic aspects of our legal system. A foundation of what used to be our capitalist economy - the corporation.

The first head-scratcher case involved a young man who brought his car to a well known, franchised auto repair shop to have a part replaced.  The part was either incorrect or incorrectly installed and the engine blew. This really isn’t important to the story other than to illustrate that he had a legitimate claim.

Care to take a guess who this guy sued?

“The parent company of the well known, franchised auto repair chain?” Nope.

“The franchisee corporation that owns the local auto repair shop?“  Guess again.

“God?“ Nah.

He sued the Service Manager.  Personally. The hourly employee who stands at the front desk, greets customers, fills out orders and invoices, passes car keys to the grease monkeys and accepts payment.  The guy wasn’t even an owner. To make matters worse, when the case came to trial, the Service Manager was no longer the Service Manager.  He was unemployed.

I called impasse within 5 minutes of being handed the case because I was not going to even suggest that the ex-Service Manager make a settlement offer.  It seemed ridiculous.

I also tried to explain to the aggrieved customer (who looked like he had a case, since the part they installed was for the same make vehicle but apparently a different model) why the case would go back to the judge and what might happen there.  I asked him,. “If you went to Home Depot and bought a drill, and that drill caught fire when you plugged it in, would you sue the cashier?”  All I got in return was a blank stare.

Is the corporation really that difficult a concept for the average person to understand?

What about insurance?  Everyone is supposed to have it.  Shouldn’t everyone have a vague idea how it works?

Yesterday, I was handed another head-scratcher case.  We never even got to the mediation room.  As I walked from the Courtroom to the mediation room, I read the file.  Turns out that the plaintiff’s car was somehow damaged and the plaintiff filed an insurance claim.  The insurance company contracted with an independent adjuster/appraiser to assess the damage.  For whatever reason, the insurer then denied the claim.  That really isn’t relevant to the story.

Care to take a guess who this person sued?

“The person who caused the damage?” Nope.

“The insurance company?” Too easy.

“The U.S. Government, which is well on it’s way to nationalizing the banking and insurance sectors?“  Guess again.

The plaintiff sued the independent adjuster, because, as the plaintiff put it, “He refuses to fix my car.”  Ninety seconds with the adjuster confirmed that he wasn’t in any way responsible for the damage, wasn’t an employee or representative of the insurer and had no settlement authority.   I didn’t even bother trying to explain this to the plaintiff, who kept telling me, in subtle variations,  “That man won’t fix my car.”  I sent them right back to the Court.

Is insurance such a foreign concept?  Is the concept of “independent contractor” that complex?  Didn’t this person speak with an insurance agent or broker?

Am I that out of touch with what the “average” lay person knows and understands?

Full post as published by CKA Mediation and Arbitration Services Blog on March 03, 2009 (boomark / email).