Things are different in Europe though. The concept of lawsuits is similar, but there are a few differences. First of all, they don’t call it the same thing that we do here. On the other side of the pond they call it an accident claim. And if you win your claim you get what they call accident compensation. While the nomenclature may be different, these are similar beasts though. Unlike the rather random nature of lawsuits in the states though, these accident claims tend to be less vague than ours. Instead of concentrating on pain, suffering and other abstract things, these accident compensation claims are focused on the victim recouping things like medical costs.

When is the right time to pursue accident compensation? Well this is one thing that should never be the first course of action a person would take. Unfortunately, many times this is the first course that people want to take though. I guess you could say that we live in a “sue happy” society. And I’m sure it has something to do with the way that legal firms advertise.

This is where the temperance and moderation parts come in. You see if you have been injured because of another party’s liability often things can be worked out between both parties instead of paying lawyers to get involved. Generally people want to do the right thing. And this includes taking responsibility for their actions without having to be forced to via a lawsuit. Of course there is a time and a place where one may need to sue, and that is why these systems are in place.

I thought that this was a uniquely American phenomenon. After all, where else can you sue a big corporation if you are stupid enough to pour piping hot coffee in your own crotch? Well I guess I was wrong in assuming we only go lawsuit crazy on this side of the pond. I was travelling in Europe last month and I kept seeing ads for accident compensation attorneys. And guess what? The name may be different, but they are the same thing as we have here!

It all started in the days of privateering (yea, that’s the nice way of saying pirates). They developed a system a long time ago that had set rates for various yet common injuries. For example, the loss of an arm was worth roughly 50 weeks of lost wages. That’s not too far off from what a typical settlement would be here in the US today!

Then more recently, but still in the 1880’s a German Chancellor introduced what he dubbed “workers compensation insurance.” This of course was Otto Von Bismark who later had a ship named after him as well as a pastry that we love to sink. And it was this model that led to the creation of other workers compensation insurance in Europe and then eventually right here at home in the USA.

But what happens if you find yourself in the same situation, but you were in Europe when this happened? Things work differently there. Instead of hiring a lawyer, you would go to a compensation solicitor. And instead of filing a lawsuit you would file what is called an injury compensation claim.

So it doesn’t exactly sound like we are comparing apples and oranges now does it? Well really we are not. The process is basically the same as it is here only they call things by different names. But there is one noteworthy difference. Let’s say you live in England, but get into an accident in Germany. You would think that at some point that you would have to go back to Germany so a judgment could be reached. But because they all work together and play by the same rules, you could take care of your civil obligation without returning to Germany to do so.

However, they shouldn’t. If someone else’s carelessness or greed causes an injury, then they need to pay for it. I found a great web page that discusses this issue and I totally agreed with the viewpoint of the person who wrote it. Check it out for yourself and see if you think the reasoning presented here has any merit: http://www.accidentconsult.com/articles/showarticles/Compensation/2/Isitethicallyrighttosueforaccidentcompensation.html.

Take a recent news story for an example. In early January of 2009 a recall of peanut butter products was announced because certain processed foods were found to be tainted with salmonella, something that can make you very sick or even kill you. I was horrified to learn that the same processing plant that was the source of the recall had had earlier problems with salmonella contamination had continued sending out their tainted food products, knowing that their food was unhealthy and might make people sick! In cases like that, I feel people are absolutely justified in suing the company that knowingly markets a tainted or unsafe product. If you’re concerned about the peanut butter recall and want more information about which products might be tainted, then read this web page: http://peanut-butter.legalview.info/.