“That idiot is going to try to sue Wendy’s for this. It’s not THEIR fault that he eats like a pig! And some greedy-assed lawyer will take the case! How ridiculous!”
@JLeslie Neither you nor @jbfletcherfan knows whether this case was ever filed, much less what the actual causes of action would be, or any of the evidence of the case—much less the character of his lawyer, if any. You don’t know if he “inhaled” the piece of plastic because he was eating “like a pig” or if it was lurking in his food causing him to choke on it, sending it down the wrong pipe into his lung. You really don’t know if it was his negligence or Wendy’s.
Yet, without having heard a single word of testimony or anything else about the case, you are willing to pronounce it “ridiculous” based on nothing more than hearsay—i.e., @jbfletcherfan‘s speculative interpretation of what happened to “some guy” she happens to regard as a pig.
The only thing “out of control” here is your and her willingness to make something out of nothing. Trust me, if you’ve ever broken a tooth on a rock that was in some canned soup, or been served up part of a latex glove in a restaurant and choked on it, you would be very glad to have legal remedies. It is not “easy” to sue someone, unless you are very wealthy or an attorney yourself.
There are numerous protections against frivolous suits. First, you can file an answer to their pleading that argues that they have failed to state a valid cause of action and move that it be dismissed. You can countersue for abuse of process. Or, you can file a motion for summary judgment. Or, you can go to the “readiness and settlement” conference and try to persuade the judge and the other side that they have no case. By the way, if it goes to trial and the party bringing suit loses, they pay the court costs and the other guy’s attorney fees. No attorney is going to take a case on contingency that he doesn’t think he can win.