Bowling for Coupons
The latest device trial attorneys use to pad their pockets is the class action lawsuit. The attorney thinks of something amiss that affects a lot of people, finds a representative, and starts a class action. He builds the class through advertising. (If you have suffered "xyz", call 1-800-xxx-xxxx). The "injury" may be large or small, it doesn't matter so much to the attorney. The idea is to get a large class. What often happens is the company settles (or just plain loses) for millions of dollars. Each member of the class recieves a check for, say, two or three dollars...if they're lucky. Most courts are now allowing the defendant to issue coupons. For instance, if you are an airline passenger who was unfairly taxed a couple of bucks on your flight with abc airline, some noble attorney is out there fighting for you. Someday you may receive a coupon for $5.00 off your next domestic flight with abc airline.

Here's the kicker. That noble attorney has earned himself a percentage of the value of the final settlement or judgment. So, if he has 100,000 member in his class and each got a $5.00 coupon, the settlement/judgment is worth $500,000. The attorney gets 30% (usually more), which comes to $150,000.

So, without further ado, here's the latest on the AMC bowling "scandal."