Antigua: Dive boat leaves behind two scuba divers

[BTravlin]

The lawyers were bad enough but don't get me started on Starbucks!

 

[BKP]

- the loser of the lawsuit will have to pay the legal costs of the winner;

- the case will have to be tried before a judge without a jury;

- the damages for pain & suffering will be capped at an amount in the low 6 figures;

- the lawyers will be prohibited by their Code of Ethics from taking a percentage of the judgment; they must charge for their TIME, not share in the result.

Gee... incredibly sane concepts. Where did it all go wrong in the US?

My wife and I just tied up a relatively small litigation. Our legal expenses (read lawyer, and paralegals) were twice the damages we recovered in the suit... and it was settled... never went to trial...

When I'm charged $150 for a 10 second phone message a lawyer leaves on my machine, then something's amiss...

 

[Alex777]

<< When I'm charged $150 for a 10 second phone message a lawyer leaves on my machine, then something's amiss... >>

Whew! Can't argue with that.

 

[StuartScuba]

Better yet.. I used to be a legal secretary/paralegal. Like as in creating the whole will and the attorney would charge over 350 for the will. But as someone said earlier, we are getting off the subject, with the main message of prevention. One thought went through my head on Bladerobinson reply about the color black. I see a new industry out there, making visiable wetsuits.

 

[DandyDon]

I hate black gear, try to get as much color as I can.

 

[StuartScuba]

Don, Once in my morning run, I came across a bright lime green vest that the road workers use. Right now it is folded up in my bc pocket.... who needs lead with all the junk we carry

 

[DandyDon]

Don, Once in my morning run, I came across a bright lime green vest that the road workers use. Right now it is folded up in my bc pocket.... who needs lead with all the junk we carry

Well, that sounds like the wrong color on the sea, but there are orange floating markers that we can get. I think I might. So I often my dives are in The Gulf Stream - Cozumel, Flower Gardens, Florida, Bahamas, NC, etc. Puget Sound had wild tidal currents, hell there are currents everywhere. A really good skipper like Capt Bobby in Morehead can track a current, but not all. Yeah I like the idea.

Or maybe a bigger SMB that can be laid down on the water for planes?

 

[littlewaywelt]

Gee... incredibly sane concepts. Where did it all go wrong in the US?

My wife and I just tied up a relatively small litigation. Our legal expenses (read lawyer, and paralegals) were twice the damages we recovered in the suit... and it was settled... never went to trial...

When I'm charged $150 for a 10 second phone message a lawyer leaves on my machine, then something's amiss...

You try forking out thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in advance. Plus some ppl can't afford the hourly rates. % of settlement is completely reasonable.

And lets remember that when your child, wife, father is killed bc of someone else's negligence you might feel differently. If ppl didn't make obviously negligent mistakes, the market for the big settlements would dry up. More than 100,000 ppl are killed as a direct result of medical negligence every year. Judges have every opportunity to throw out cases that have no merrit.

 

[littlewaywelt]

That's a nice follow up. I like the resorts response and the measures they did to appease the vacationers.

Now, I sure hope no scum sucking bottom dwelling personal injury attorney makes money off of this incident. :no

They are insured and it serves as a just punnishment. This is a business whose negligence could very easilly have killed someone. They ought to be punnished for that. If a dm left your child out there you might feel differently.

 

[BladesRobinson]

...sounds like the wrong color on the sea...

Wow ... I was surprised to see this thread is ongoing!

Don, I wanted to reply to a post about the lime green vest. I have been told that the lime green color is the easiest to see in most lighting conditions and this is why the Department of Transportation has changed the vest colors for highway workers.

I am really glad to see that some are considering a color change and recognizing the benefits of bright contrasting colors as it relates to SAFETY. I speak only for myself but I like being responsible for ME and I am just a little uncomfortable when I have trust my well being to someone I don't know. I realize on a charter boat, we all have to trust the crew and divemasters but I still do my part. I listen to the briefings, I follow the instructions, I work hard to stay with the group and make a conscious effort to a "survivor." I preplan and try to have a "Plan A" and "Plan B" for most situations. Equipment color is the easy "fix" in the worst situations and I am more concerned about my safety than making a fashion statement.

Should the worst case scenario ever happen to me, please tell the search party to check the terra firma because that is the direction I'm heading for! I will take my steak "medium" and the bake potato "loaded" if they will call ahead on my behalf.