Civil court cases such as the "McDonald's Coffee Spill" are on the decline. In the last decade, civil court jury trials across the U.S. have decreased 27 percent. In Pennsylvania, civil court juries are down by 10 percent.
Tim Eckley, of the American Judicature Society, said fear of verdicts is one cause of the drop-off in trials.
"Invariably, juries get it right. They tend to take the job very seriously, but people don't always realize that," Eckley said.
The landmark McDonald's coffee case is a prime example.
In 1994, a 79 year old woman sued the restaurant after a cup of scalding hot coffee spilled between her legs. A jury found the woman 20 percent at fault for her injuries, but still awarded her $2.7 million in punitive damages. Evidence presented in the case included an admission from McDonald's that it was aware that its coffee was too hot and that it was "unfit for human consumption."
Afterward McDonald's lowered the temperature of its coffee by about 40 degrees. The trial judge eventually reduced the jury award to $480,000.
Pennsylvania court officials suggest there are more efficient ways to move more cases through the legal system at a faster pace and at a lower cost. Jury trials involve not only attorney expenses but often fees for expert witness testimony as well.
Richard Schubert, a Pittsburgh lawyer and past president of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyer's Association, said the cost of some product liability and medical malpractice cases can cost in upwards of $100,000.
Personal injury attorneys such as Schubert charge a portion of the verdict, usually between 33 percent and 40 percent.
Criminal lawyers typically charge up front, about $10,000 for an average felony trial, Schubert said. And that's just attorney fees. Expert witnesses cost more. "The most expensive way to dispose of a case is by a jury trial. We still offer jury trials; we're constitutionally mandated. But the fact that there are people who don't avail themselves to it, that's their decision," said Allegheny County President Judge Joseph James.
James said the loss of industry in the region has led to fewer industrial and construction accident lawsuits. Relocation of corporate headquarters from Pittsburgh has stemmed the flow of civil litigation, as has Pennsylvania's aging population.
Reference:
"Fear of verdict, costs cited for decline," Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Rich Cholodofsky, April 2006.
