[dmm]

We have to put up with warning labels everywhere that try to think of every possible contingency, as if we're all a bunch of imbeciles, and we all pay higher prices for everything, and insurance companies won't let anybody have any fun anymore, just so a few people and their attorneys can "win the lottery." It has to stop.
There are several fairly simple solutions to the overabundant lawsuit problem:
1) Do not allow attorneys to get paid a percentage of the damage award. (I think Canada does this.) Or, to make it more fair to non-rich people who otherwise might not be able to sue (even when they should), put a cap on the amount that attorneys can collect. Or, allow juries or judges to determine the attorney's payment from the award.
2) Allow juries the power to penalize someone who brings a ridiculous lawsuit. They can decide if the suer or his attorney should pay.
3) I like that demerit idea also.
4) Do not allow people to sue an entire corporation because of the actions of one person or one store or one franchise. For example, a woman tried to drive away from McDonald's with hot coffee between her legs. The cup came open, she got badly burned down there, and she sued McDonald's, Inc. What would she have been awarded if she had sued the McDonald's employee who was working at the drive-in that day (on the basis that he neglected to remind her that the coffee was hot)? Nothing, of course! How about the manager (on the basis that he didn't train the employee properly)? Little or nothing. How about the franchise owner (on the basis that he ordered the coffee temperature set too high)? Maybe her medical bills, but no pain and suffering. But because McDonald's is a big company, and the jury felt sorry for her, they awarded her something like a million dollars.
5) Give the defendant home-field advantage. If a multi-state corporation gets sued, they should get to pick the location where the suit takes place. Currently, the plaintiff picks the location, and of course attorneys always pick places with a history of big damage awards or where the defendant is disliked. If you are suing Microsoft for destroying your future because Windows allowed your little sister to delete your entire 50-page term paper and you think Windows should have warned you to make a backup, then I think Microsoft should at least be allowed to have the trial in Seattle, or even Redmond.