Senior Partner
Our clients teach us many lessons.
And through them, we are humbled.
Humbled by their strength. Their resilience. Their power.
Their ability to make more from tragedy than tragedy.
My client Brian B. continues to teach me that you can become bigger than yourself or your tragedy.
He just spoke for the second time to the Oregon state legislature.
He speaks because he lost his son in a tragic set of preventable circumstances at a ski resort.
He speaks because he wants to honor his son, by being a voice in the community, and for the community.
“This is what I have to do, for B,” he says. “I have to drive down to Oregon, every time, and I have to speak.”
Brian’s message is powerful. He is intelligent and educated. And he is speaking from his heart. The message is simple:
Laws that eliminate liability for ski resorts act as a shield against accountability. Without considering the facts. Without considering the conduct. These laws give multi-million-dollar resorts a wholesale pass to conduct their business negligently– and at the expense of their guests. Is that acceptable to us?
The truth is, we already have an accountability system in place to protect all of us—individuals, corporations, and governments: Our jury system. Juries protect against unfair accusations or unreasonable claims. They also protect against corporate greed and dangerous practices. They hear the facts. They hear the circumstances.
Our jury system is both a constitutional right and a powerful tool for actual humans to express the standards and expectations of their communities.
While the ski industry cites rising insurance costs, a constant refrain, the trillion-dollar insurance industry decides what to charge for insurance. They are in the business of paying claims. And they’re clearly making a profit. Exorbitant insurance rates are a problem with insurance company greed, not with claims. As Brian says, “we should not supplement the income of insurance companies with the lives and safety of human beings.”
The link to the article covering the legislative hearing is here.