In 2005, a judge in Washington, D.C. sued his local dry cleaners for $54 million over a pair of lost pants, arguing that their ‘satisfaction guaranteed’ sign entitled him to damages. The case dragged on for years and nearly bankrupted the family before the court finally ruled against him.
by IloveRamen99
26 Comments
The judge was Roy L. Pearson Jr., and he argued that the dry cleaner’s “Satisfaction Guaranteed” sign was a legally binding promise. When he claimed they lost his pants, he demanded $54 million in damages, basing the number on years of daily car rentals and additional penalties. The case dragged on from 2005 to 2007, nearly bankrupting the small family-owned business before Pearson finally lost, appealed, and lost again. The ordeal was so notorious that Pearson was later denied reappointment as an administrative judge, and the case is now often cited in law schools as a textbook example of lawsuit abuse.
that lawsuit was an insane overreaction.
It would’ve entitled him to a new pair of pants. $54 million is fucking nuts.
American treat lawsuits like lottery tickets. You got to try to cash it.
The judge should be made to compensate the family business
Daily car rentals what the fuck?
The original Karen?!?!
Did the shop win court and lawyer costs? if not, could they not sue this idiot?
the courts that enabled this to drag on for 2 years should have been countered sued along with roy jr.
You would think a judge would know better….
Disgusting wtf
I remember this. The Great American Pants Suit. If I recall correctly, during a deposition it was revealed that this idiot was going through a divorce and had been financially cleaned out thus leaving him broke as fuck. So he was desperate for money. Hence this stupidity.
Dick.
Wow, what an asshole
Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhit
His intent was never to get money from them. It was to drown them in debt. I have a friend who owned a business and something similar happened. He was in the right but 4 years of lawsuits and 150k+ in fees to lawyers being right and winning doesnt really matter. He was out 150k and it did nearly bankrupt him
Only in America…
Imagine getting bankrupt by a pair of pants
You’d wonder how such a POS can be a judge in the first place.
Suing a small family-owned business for $54 million over lost pants!!! He’s batshit crazy
needs jail time
This is why the British legal system is vastly superior to the US one. If you bring a frivolous lawsuit, you have to pay legal fees for both parties. It prevents lawfare.
It was called the Pant Suit (not kidding).
Sounds like the judge tried to take them to the cleaners…
A judge….just let that sink.
So this as_hole drove a family owned small business nearly into Bankruptcy, “Cause well… your sign said!” Absolutely ridiculous. Typical BS lawsuits so frequent here in the US. I lived in Japan for many years, in Japan there are almost NO “frivolous lawsuits” and they make fun of our “Starbucks served me a coffee, I spilled it on my legs… IMMA NEED $45 Million for pain & Suffering!” Thank god, they got rid of him as a “Judge”.
He actually applied for a job in my old office in about 2012. Didn’t make it past initial screening