Personal Injury Lawyers Try To Cash In Over Cook Co. Soda Tax

By TRAVIS AKIN, Executive Director, Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch

Cook County has long been known as a haven for frivolous lawsuits, so it was no surprise to read about a man who recently filed a lawsuit in Cook County court against Walgreens for mistakenly applying the new soda pop tax to unsweetened sparkling water.

Here we have someone looking to cash in on a mistake that only cost him pennies and was quickly corrected by Walgreens. This kind of junk lawsuit is all too common in Cook County, which the survey company Harris Poll recently ranked as the most unfair and unreasonable litigation climate of any city or county in the country in its most recent study of local court systems.

Additionally, this past December, Cook County was named to a list of the “Top Ten Worst Judicial Hellholes” in the country by the American Tort Reform Association, which defines a “judicial hellhole” as “a place where judges systematically apply laws and court procedures in an unfair and unbalanced manner.”

That is certainly an apt description of Cook County, which aggressive personal injury lawyers have turned into their own personally profitable playground. These personal injury lawyers spend millions on ubiquitous TV ads and billboards that encourage people to sue, resulting in a flood of frivolous lawsuits that clog Cook County courts and delay justice for people with legitimate claims.

Personal injury lawyers also give millions to Illinois judges in campaign contributions, so perhaps we should not be surprised that the court system in Cook County is so out of balance and so favorable to plaintiffs.

This imbalance incentivizes personal injury lawyers to play the “lawsuit lottery” in Cook County, filing countless frivolous lawsuits with the hope of cashing in with one big jackpot.

Not surprisingly, other personal injury lawyers see a golden ticket with the soda tax, as lawsuits have now been field against McDonald’s and 7-11 for mistakenly misapplying the tax in the confusing first few days it was implemented.

If these frivolous lawsuits filed against hometown companies Walgreens and McDonald’s somehow succeed, the personal injury lawyers stand to win millions, while pop drinkers win pennies, and Walgreens and McDonald’s, which employ tens of thousands of people in Illinois, may have to reduce the number of jobs here or raise prices for consumers.

The cost of fighting frivolous lawsuits often does force companies to raise prices, which means aggressive personal injury lawyers are responsible for a “lawsuit tax” that’s added on to everything you buy. Studies have shown this “lawsuit tax” adds up to over $800 per year for every person in Illinois, or over $3,000 for a family of four.

That’s money that’s better spent on a family vacation, or new bikes for the kids, or a college fund, instead of going into the pockets of personal injury lawyers.

For all these reasons, let’s hope these soda pop lawsuits quickly fizzle.