Request A Free Consultation
Arizona panorama with cacti

A Few Frivolous and Silly lawsuits (Part 1)

February 7, 2016 Hastings and Hastings

These days, it seems like people will sue over anything. Some individuals have a hair trigger when to comes to firing off lawsuits. Whether they are overreacting to some perceived slight, or legitimately trying to defend their rights yes seeking ludicrous compensation, these lawsuits couldn’t be described as anything but frivolous and silly. Let’s take a look at part 1 of our serious on ridiculous lawsuits.

 

  1. Defendant vs Plaintiff: Man vs Himself

Robert Lee Brock was a prisoner at the Indian Creek Correctional Center located in Chesapeake, Virginia. The exact specifics of his case are best summarized by Mr. Brock himself.

“I partook of alcoholic beverages in 1993, July 1st, as a result I caused myself to violate my religious beliefs. This was done by my going out and getting arrested.”

Mr. Brock decided the only reasonable course of action was to sue himself for violating his own rights.

“I want to pay myself 5 million dollars, but ask the state to pay it in my behalf since I can’t work and am a ward of the state.”

The case was brought to Judge Rebecca Beach Smith who promptly threw it out. She called Mr. Brock’s claim “ludicrous”, however she did begrudgingly call it, “an innovative approach to civil rights litigation.” Mr. Brock is currently serving a 23 year sentence for breaking and entering and grand larceny.

2.Kellogg v. Exxon

In 1998 Kellogg and Exxon Mobile became embroiled in an ugly battle over the rights to a “whimsical tiger logo.” Kellogg decided to sue the gas station giant as the felt their tiger logo was too similar to their own Tony the Tiger. The only problem was, Exxon had been using the same logo for 30 years! A federal court dismissed the lawsuit, citing in part Kellogg’s extreme tardiness in filling the lawsuit.