Injury Law Blog and News » access to justice

Lieff Cabraser Co-Sponsors Free Showing of the Documentary “Hot Coffee”

admin — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 19:44:17 +0000

Join us for a free showing with director Susan Saladoff of

HOT COFFEE

Thursday, November 10th, 12:30 p.m.
Palace Hotel, Gold Room
2 New Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA

Space is limited.
Please RSVP to HotCoffeeSF@lchb.com

About Hot Coffee

The documentary reveals what really happened to Stella Liebeck, the Albuquerque woman who spilled coffee on herself and sued McDonald’s, while exploring how and why the case garnered so much media attention, who funded the effort and to what end. First-time filmmaker and former public interest lawyer Susan Saladoff uses this infamous case to investigate what’s behind the push for tort reform – which threatens to restrict the legal rights of everyday citizens and undermine the entire justice system.

Hot Coffee challenges viewers to reexamine their beliefs that the courts are flooded with frivolous lawsuits that lead to “jackpot justice.” The documentary shows how Americans are giving up their Constitutional rights without knowing it by voting for limitations on damages or agreeing to mandatory arbitration embedded in the fine print of contracts and waiving their right to a jury trial.

Susan Saladoff, director of “Hot Coffee The Movie”, appeared on the October 25, 2011 Colbert Report to discuss the civil justice system and tort reform. It is a informative interview wherein Ms. Saladoff explains tort reform and discusses the myth of frivolous lawsuits that everyone should see and share.

As described in a review by the Washington Post, “Unlike so many documentaries these days, ‘Hot Coffee’ is refreshingly unadorned or manipulated for artistic or tear-jerking effect. It winnows down complicated legal arguments and anecdotal cases with compassion and clarity.”

Threat To Our Constitutional Rights Highlighted In “Hot Coffee” Documentary

admin — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 22:49:49 +0000

: Video: Hot Coffee Trailer

The award-winning documentary Hot Coffee shows what occurred to Stella Liebeck, the woman who spilled coffee on herself and sued McDonald’s, while exploring how and why the case garnered so much media attention, and who funded the effort. First-time filmmaker and former public interest lawyer Susan Saladoff uses this infamous case to investigate the corporate push for tort reform – which threatens to restrict the legal rights of everyday citizens and undermine the entire justice system.

As described in a review by the Washington Post, “Unlike so many documentaries these days, ‘Hot Coffee’ is refreshingly unadorned or manipulated for artistic or tear-jerking effect. It winnows down complicated legal arguments and anecdotal cases with compassion and clarity.”

Hot Coffee is playing this Summer on HBO.

Beleagured Food and Drug Administration Reveals It Succumbed to a Push by “Paid-For Lawmakers”

admin — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:41:21 +0000

As noted in our Medtronic heart lead recall blog, the New York Times has issued a story that the U.S. FDA “has revealed that four New Jersey congressmen and its own former commissioner unduly influenced the process that led to its decision last year to approve a patch for injured knees,” an approval it is now revisiting. As the Times reports, over many years the agency’s scientific reviewers repeatedly and unanimously decided that the device, known as Menaflex, was unsafe because the device often failed, resulting in patients having to have an additional knee operation.

Nevertheless, after receiving what an FDA report described as “extreme,” “unusual” and persistent pressure from four NJ Democrats, agency managers overruled the scientists and approved the device for sale in December. All four legislators began their pushing within a few months of receiving significant campaign contributions from the manufacturer of the patch.

This only highlights the importance of passage of the Medical Device Safety Act, which would restore the right of patients injured by faulty medical devices to hold manufacturers accountable. The safety of millions of Americans with medical devices cannot and should not be put in the hands of one person at the FDA. The civil justice system provides an independent check and balance on corporations to ensure that their products are safe for consumer use.

California medical malpractice law in spotlight; “250 cases” cause dismay

admin — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:00:45 +0000

Wayne Volkmuth learned what a “250 case” was while conducting research shortly after the loss of his 7-year-old son, Ryan, who died three years ago during a dental procedure at a Palo Alto clinic. As a story in the San Francisco Chronicle describes, the “250″ refers to $250,000, the largest amount Volkmuth could recover in a medical malpractice claim over his disabled son’s death, a limit set 34 years ago by California’s landmark medical malpractice law. It’s also the reason his case was turned down by most of the dozen medical malpractice attorneys he and his wife consulted.

With the malpractice cap set at $250,000, few attorneys will consider championing such cases, as the economics of the court system render such quests, however noble, as basically senseless and unavailing.

Read the full article on the SF Gate website.

Child Seeks to Convince Congress to Restore Patient Rights

admin — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 23:26:10 +0000

Six year-old Avery deGroh of McHenry, Illinois, and her parents have traveled to Washington, D.C. not once but twice in 2009 to share her story with Congress and to ask for passage of the Medical Device Safety Act.

This bill would overturn a recent Supreme Court decision granting immunity to medical device manufacturers for producing faulty products. Avery deGroh received a heart device when she was two, and due to a defect in that device, less than a year later it malfunctioned and sent numerous painful and terrifying electric shocks directly to her heart. NBC News Chicago recently profiled Avery and her family, and their effort to convince Congress to enact the Medical Device Safety Act.

Senate Hearing Highlights Victim’s Medtronic Medical Device Nightmare

admin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 03:59:05 +0000

Two years ago, Michael Mulvihill of Bettendorf, Iowa, was driving when he saw a blue light flash before his eyes. His heart defibrillator was malfunctioning and sending electrical shocks throughout his body. Mulvihill’s nightmare continues because he cannot hold the manufacturer of his faulty medical device accountable due to a U.S. Supreme Court decision that gave device manufacturers complete immunity.

Today, Mulvihill, a client of Lieff Cabraser, testified before a U.S. Senate Committee, asking for Congress to pass the Medical Device Safety Act (MDSA), legislation that would restore the right of patients to hold manufacturers of defective medical devices accountable. Learn more about the Medical Device Safety Act.