# Another Good Reason to Have Liability Insurance...



## Bill Mattocks (Jul 5, 2010)

http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/20100702_Newswatch.html



> The father of an 18-year-old woman whose nude body was found last summer near a public housing project in Kalihi is suing the city, the state, his daughter's accused killer *and the martial arts organization that allegedly trained the accused killer*.
> Steven Rodrigues, father of Iris Rodrigues-Kaikana, filed a lawsuit in state court Tuesday against the city, the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, accused killer Corbit Ahn and the Mixed Martial Arts Academy.



While it is arguable how much responsibility or control the training center has over the actions of it's students, lawsuits are expensive to defend against, and not defending oneself means a default judgment for the plaintiff.

Insurance is a very good thing to have if you run a school.


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## Ken Morgan (Jul 5, 2010)

Ridiculous.
If I kill someone with my car, does that mean you can sue my driving school? If one of my paintings makes you cry and you lose a contact, can you sue my art college?


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## Bill Mattocks (Jul 5, 2010)

Ken Morgan said:


> Ridiculous.
> If I kill someone with my car, does that mean you can sue my driving school? If one of my paintings makes you cry and you lose a contact, can you sue my art college?



Not ridiculous.  Anyone can sue anyone for anything.  That is my point.  The suit may have no merit and may be dismissed; or you may prevail in court; but in either case, you will face legal costs; some of them may be quite high.

Liability insurance pays for legal defense and/or indemnifies you against damages; in other words, the monkey is off your back.  You won't lose your business or face crippling legal expenses.

And you might check into something called 'dram shop laws'.  You and I might agree that it is the person who drinks who is responsible for their actions; nevertheless, the law has quite often held the bar or tavern responsible for continuing to serve a drunken patron.

In realistic terms, lawyers go after 'deep pockets' when they cast about for liability.  They often sue everyone right upfront, and use discovery to find out what the companies and individuals they sue might be worth.  If you have a business with a high book value, or a high net personal worth and are not running a limited liability or corporation, you might find yourself sued because you have 'deep pockets'.  In any case - even if you petition to be removed as a defendant and the motion is granted - it's going to cost money.

So my point - liability insurance is a good idea for many.  Just a thought.


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## Ken Morgan (Jul 5, 2010)

Agreed.
The Canadian legal system is somewhat different however.


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## Bill Mattocks (Jul 5, 2010)

Ken Morgan said:


> Agreed.
> The Canadian legal system is somewhat different however.



Point made.  I tend to forget about that.


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## Haakon (Jul 5, 2010)

Ken Morgan said:


> Agreed.
> The Canadian legal system is somewhat different however.



Hopefully different in a positive way. In the US gun manufacturers have been sued because some criminal used a gun to kill someone. Fortunately the gun makers won those suits, but I'm sure it wasn't cheap to do so.


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