The trial lawyer attack Repubs are using against Edwards - ?/James Baker.

[blm]

One of the cases Edwards took on was a young girl who was killed by a too powerful pool drain. Republicans act upset about the manufacturer being sued.

Didn't James Baker recently lose his granddaughter at a family gathering in the exact same tragic circumstance? I believe the drain was in a hottub.

Anyone know if the family filed suit against the manufacturer, and if not, why not? Surely politics wouldn't take precedent over the possibility that someone else's child would be next.

On edit: Correction... the girl in the Edwards' case is alive but needs constant care.
Thanks still_one.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. Do you want the guy that helps the underdogs or the guy that

represents the Saudi Royal family?

[still_one]

3. The guy that helps the underdogs...

Is that the right answer?

[blm]

5. Curious if there was a settlement offered the Bakers right away.

Also how much?

I think this could be significant, especially since Bush and the GOP are pushing caps on awards.

[still_one]

2. First of all

the girl is still alive, but in a very bad maintenance state. Second, this was not the first case by this manufacturer, and they did nothing to correct the problem...

[Cassandra]

4. I thought it was his grandson, but no matter...

I was wondering that myself. I'm sure they wouldn't have to sue; they'd just look at them nasty and the company would cave.

[merh]

13. It was Baker's grand daughter

Here is an article discussing pool litigation.

(snip)

The victim in this case was Graeme Baker, the granddaughter of James Baker III, former secretary of state under President George Bush. While she did, indeed, technically drown, the events surrounding the accident are far more insidious. The police report lays them out in horrific detail:

The mother … tried to pull her daughter out of the pool. The mother could not lift her daughter from the pool and struggled greatly. Two persons then came to her assistance and pulled the girl out by her ankles.

(snip)

Hall goes on to say that the Bakers plan to hold the industry accountable for the suction entrapment phenomenon.

“We pledge to do all within our power to see that this industry meets its obligation to an unsuspecting public,” he says. “ senseless death should be a wake-up call for this industry to accept responsibility for all such deaths and injuries and be accountable for the decades it has ignored its duties.”


http://www.poolspanews.com/2003/102/102entrapment.html

[Lex]

6. That was what was so outrageous in the case Edwards took on . . .

In the case where Edwards represented the little girl whose intestines were sucked out by the drain is that the manufacturer knew the defect existed and knew other children had been injured.

They decided to continue to manufacture the defective pool drain/filtration system.

One of the reasons that Edwards and the family got a big award in that case was because of how cavalier the company was about continuing to injure and maim people.

[elehhhhna]

7. Don't forget that

Baker has been retained by the Saudi Royal Family to defend them against the 911 families lawsuit. Now THAT's a patriotic trial lawyer!

[SoFlaJet]

24. great point Elana

their hypocrisy knows no bounds

[AP]

8. A big reason Edwards won that case was because Edwards asked the company

to turn over an records they had of similar accidents from their Wisconsin HQ. The company avoided compliance. Finally, they relented. A couple days after conceding, the judge asked them where the files were. The company's lawyer said they were on a Ryder truck somewhere between WI and NC.

A RYDER TRUCK!!! "You're in big trouble," the judge said.

Edwards writes about this in Four Trials.

[Cassandra]

15. A killer combination of obvious delay and..

a quantity of files so large that they needed a truck to haul them.

[PA Democrat]

9. No lawsuit filed yet

"Although no lawsuits have yet been filed in the Baker case, a family spokesman issued a statement to Pool & Spa News, clearly indicating that the writing is on the wall.


“The swimming pool and spa industry has been well aware of these risks since the late 1970s,” says Robert T. Hall, an attorney for Nancy and James Baker IV, Graeme’s parents. “Their products are especially hazardous to children. Since the 1980s, there have been at least 147 entrapment incidents documented, resulting in 36 deaths.”


Hall goes on to say that the Bakers plan to hold the industry accountable for the suction entrapment phenomenon."

The girl drowned when she was sucked into the hot tub drain and was unable to escape.

http://www.poolspanews.com/2003/102/102entrapment.html

[blm]

10. Thanks. We should push this as a HUGE counter to what they are doing

to the rest of America, and the smears against Edwards and other trial lawyers.

[PA Democrat]

16. If Rick Santorum criticizes Edwards & trial lawyers remind

people of the $500,000 malpractice lawsuit he and his wife filed against a chiropractor.

A jury awarded Mrs. Santorum $350,000, which is significantly HIGHER than the medical malpractice cap of $250,000 that Rick Santorum had advocated for in the past, and continues to advocate for today.

http://www.valleyskeptic.com/chirosuit.html

[PA Democrat]

17. Sorry, dupe

[Bake]

18. Be sure to keep facts straight -- the cap applies to pain & suffering

Or "non-economic damages" as tort reform legislation generally refers to it. I don't know what portion of Scumtorum's award was for pain and suffering, and what was actual economic damages (e.g., medical bills incurred to correct whatever damage was caused by the defendant).

We just need to keep our facts straight, so we can avoid giving the RWers any room to criticize our arguments.

And I agree 1000000% -- Scumtorum and James Baker are poster boys for RW hypocrisy.

Bake, Esq.

[blm]

19. Yes. That is important...and who believes that Baker will agree that

his granddaughter's tragic death caused pain and suffering to his family worth $250,000.00?

[PA Democrat]

21. Santorums sued for "great pain, suffering, embarrassment, humiliation

loss of earning capacity," and ongoing medical expenses. Mrs. Santorum was and still is a stay-at-home mother, and had no income at the time of her injury.

Here are some of the related court documents, including the jury verdict, and a motion to have the court documents sealed:

http://www.vamedmal.com/library/Santorum_MFJ.pdf

http://www.vamedmal.com/library/santorum_motion_to_seal.pdf

http://www.vamedmal.com/library/Santorum_Jury_Verdict.pdf

[PA Democrat]

22. Jury awards are not typically broken down

into components of economic damages verses pain and suffering.

Also, the judge reduced the jury's verdict from $350,000 to $175,000 IIRC, because of "undue sympathy" based upon the plaintiffs' notoriety. No judge is going to reduce a verdict by 50% if it was based primarily upon justifiable economic damages.

I have NO problem arguing Santorum's abject hypocrisy based upon the facts of this case.

[Cassandra]

14. They can't ask John Edwards to represent them...

because he'll be VICE-PRESIDENT!!!

[blm]

23. I am SO looking forward to VP Edwards and

President Kerry.

[SoFlaJet]

11. the hypocrites that they are.......

are in power today by running to the courts.Remember when you need a talking point,just ask them who it was that sued under (un)equal representation until finally one vote on them the election(USSC's ruling in the Gore v Bush cluster fuck()

[ThomWV]

12. Trial Lawyer Attacks?

Remind your attackers of this: Bush did not win an election, he won a lawsuit. He won it with by his representation by trial lawyers in both the State and Supreme courts. Is this the man who now condems trial lawyers?

[ElsewheresDaughter]

20. repukes believe Corporate Lawyers are the good guys...i pity repuke voters

[PA Democrat]

25. The statute of limitations for product liability cases is 2 years

in Virginia. Maybe they will not file the lawsuit until after the election. They have until June 2005.