Depantsed for pants
There has been a very weird story coming out of DC lately involving a pair of pants. Judge Roy Pearson, a Washington administrative law judge, was on the wrong end of a fellow judge's ruling in regards to a civil suit that Pearson filed against a local dry cleaner. Pearson sued for $54 million because the cleaners had lost his pair of pants and more importantly, had advertised "Satisfaction Guaranteed." His interpretation of this advertising claim was that the Cleaner's owners should pay him several thousand of dollars per day over a four year period of disputation. The judge in the case ruled against him and made him pay a few thousand in expenses.
The news services have been ridiculing Judge Pearson and are holding up this case as a poster child for tort reform The story is silly and Pearson sounds like an arrogant old fool. Having said that, I can begrudgingly understand his frustration. Advertising is used way too loosely these days and people should be held accountable for what they say. These cleaners also said "Same Day Service", which they probably didn't adhere to. Their argument was that same day service was available, not that it would always be guaranteed.
I like the fact that someone struck a blow for truth in advertising.
Judge Pearson is, however, crazy.
Posted on June 26, 2007
