Do you believe lawsuits are about blame? Do you say to people that we need to kill all the lawyers? If so, you’re missing the point and should ready yourself for the day when the unreasonable and the irresponsible rule the world. As trial lawyers our goal is to explain to a fact finder in simple terms what made America the greatest country on earth.

I hear it all the time: We need to stop all of these lawsuits and stop blaming someone for our own faults. That statement implies that lawsuits are about fault and it shows a lack of understanding about insurance law in this century. In every insurance policy you have a subrogation clause that gives the insurance company the right to sue whoever caused your loss. If you don't sue they will. It's all part of the contract you signed for health insurance, workers' compensation insurance and auto insurance.

Subrogation is defined in this way: Subrogation in its most common usage refers to circumstances in which an insurance company tries to recoup expenses for a claim it paid out when another party should have been responsible for paying at least a portion of that claim.

Subrogation is a simple legal concept that allows your insurance company to get paid back for having paid your damages. Subrogation is a cornerstone of maintaining an orderly society while keeping your premium lower than it would be without subrogation. It forces those acting in an unreasonable way to shoulder the costs associated with causing losses. It also allows those who act reasonably and respectfully of others to not have to shoulder a large burden created by those acting irresponsibly.  Simply put lawsuits are an economic necessity in an orderly society where responsibility is shared.

Related concepts include indemnity and liens.

But here is my point in this blog. Lawsuits aren’t about blame; they are about reasonable behavior and assigning legal responsibility for unreasonable behavior. Legal responsibility is about attributing payments to those who act in a way they cause an injury, damage or a death.  That people who focus on the concept of blame are trying to change the jury’s mind-set to fault in a generic sense that brings with it negative connotations and allows unreasonable behavior to be rewarded.

As the plaintiff’s attorney, your goal is to concentrate on the issue of law and order, not school-yard finger pointing. That's enough for today here is a movie clip you'll surely enjoy. It's a timeless piece of work by Paul Newman from The Verdict where he talks about the symbols that signify what we are ultimately trying to do.