Lawsuit of the Day: The Brotherhood of the Litigation-Inducing Pants
Do you miss Roy Pearson, the administrative law judge who sued his dry cleaners for $54 million over a lost pair of pants? If so, you might get a kick out of this tale, from the West Virginia Record:
In a case that mirrors a recent headline-grabbing lawsuit, a Charleston attorney claims a dry cleaner lost clothes he had left to be cleaned.Richard D. Jones filed the suit July 25 in Kanawha Circuit Court against Pressed For Time and Lisa Williams.
Jones is an attorney for Flaherty, Sensabaugh and Bonasso.
Jones's bio on the firm website shows that, interestingly enough, he's a civil litigator on the defense side. How would he respond to a case like the one he just filed?
More after the jump.
This next part sounds like a plot line for Seinfeld, or Curb Your Enthusiasm:
According to the suit, Jones routinely left clothes for dry cleaning at Pressed For Time. During one instance, Jones claims his clothes were not returned and he was advised that his clothes were lost or may have been given to another customer.A store employee asked Jones to be patient and wait to see in the clothes would reappear, which Jones claims he did, but the clothes did not reappear.
According to the suit, Jones has contacted Pressed For Time on several occasions and asked for reimbursement for his clothing and supplied an invoice showing the price of the clothing. Jones claims the company has failed to either return the clothing or reimburse him for the cost.
The article compares Jones's case to that of Roy Pearson. But Jones's claim for damages isn't quite as aggressive. He's seeking reimbursement for the value of the lost clothes -- plus punitive damages.
Seeking punitives may be a bit much. But on its face, Jones's lawsuit isn't completely ridiculous. One wonders why Pressed for Time didn't just reimburse Jones for the lost clothing, especially given his status as a lawyer.
(Tongue-in-cheek aside: If these lawsuits become a trend, maybe dry cleaners become reluctant to have lawyers as customers, just like some landlords try to avoid having attorneys as tenants.)
Charleston attorney sues over missing pants [West Virginia Record]
(15) Comments
First
These pretzels are making me THIRSTY!!!
first!!!
nothing outrageous about asking for your clothes back (or their value). as for punitives - depends on the amount and the facts and circumstances. if the dry cleaners' attitude was uncoperative and their practices grossly negligent, then yes, there should be punitive damages (although of course not ridiculous amounts).
i don't think there's any danger dry cleaners will refuse to serve lawyers. how would this be enforced? the customer can simply not disclose.
Agreed with 4. Comparing this case to Roy Pearson is stupid. If a dry cleaner loses your clothes, they should pay you back. If they're uncooperative about what else are you to do other than drop it or sue?
If punitives are available, then why not ask for them?
---------I was going to end this with a comment about how Lat's departure has led to a decline in quality, then I checked the byline. How could you?
Funny -- this guy is braggin on his profile about being "BV" rated.
I don't blame him. In Bratislava a pair of pants costs at least 4 months' salary...
Pressed for Time.... oh.... I get it!
Where's the tort? Cleaning malpractice? This is a contract action, and no punies there.
Where's the tort? Cleaning malpractice? This is a contract action, and no punies there.
"How would he respond to a case like the one he just filed?"
FREE MUSTACHE RIDES for the ladies;
and a TOWEL-SNAP ON YOUR BARE-WET ASS for the men.
9: Try, um, conversion? Don't worry...you'll get to bailments next semester in property.
lack of outrage = racism
"The case is similar to a now-world famous 2005 lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C"--without the $54 million prayer.
Instead, this judge just wants the value of the pants.
Don't they have small claims court in W VA?
White people are hilarious . . .