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Most Ridiculous Lawsuits of 2009

What makes for an outrageous lawsuit? Try a convicted double murderer suing for the ownership of his victims' car or a tourist suing a hotel because, she claimed, its pool got her daughter pregnant.

The Chamber's of Commerce's Institute for Legal Reform released the list, which is based on responses to FacesofLawsuitAbuse.org, a Web site seeking to raise public awareness of "how abusive lawsuits affect small businesses and average families in very real ways," the chamber said in a statement.

"While ridiculous lawsuits may be easy fodder for late-night television hosts, they are no laughing matter for the defendants targeted," said ILR President Lisa Rickard.

ILR has announced the top five vote getters of its 1st Annual Most Ridiculous Lawsuit of the Year Poll. Nominees were drawn from the monthly Most Ridiculous Lawsuit poll winners, chosen by visitors to FacesofLawsuitAbuse.org, a public awareness campaign Web site that aims to show how abusive lawsuits affect small businesses and average families in very real ways.

The top five Most Ridiculous Lawsuits of 2009 are:

Neighbor sues woman for smoking in her own home;

Double-murderer sues to claim his victims’ classic Chevy pickup;

Holocaust denier sues Auschwitz survivor, alleging memoir contains “fantastical tales;”

Tourist sues hotel, claiming swimming pool got daughter pregnant;

Illegal immigrants sue rancher who stopped them on his property at gunpoint and turned them over to the Border Patrol.

The entire top 12, by month, were:

January’s winner: Woman crashes on curve, sues county claiming 10mph speed limit was inadequate warning http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/12/appellate_division_reinstates
.html

February’s winner: Customer sues restaurant chain after toilet paper rolls from “unreasonably dangerous toilet paper dispenser” fall onto his hand http://www.register-herald.com/policecourts/local_story_026213403.html

March’s winner: Illegal immigrants sue rancher who stopped them on his property at gunpoint and turned them over to the Border Patrol http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/09/16-illegals-sue-arizon
a-rancher/

April’s winner: Tourist sues New York club after she slipped while dancing on top of the bar http://www.nypost.com/p/news/regional/item_wXruQ30RzsqIT36FKS6s5M

May’s winner: Woman microwaves hair removal wax, spills it on herself, and sues manufacturer for "placing such dangerous products into the stream of commerce" http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,516929,00.html

June’s winner: Inmate sues to avoid being named world's most litigious person http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/may/23/man-sues-book-over-most-l
itigious-crown/

July’s winner: Double-murderer sues to claim his victims' classic Chevy pickup http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/article1007994.ece

August’s winner: Tourist sues hotel, claiming swimming pool got daughter pregnant http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,531505,00.html

September’s winner: Dolphins splash, woman sues http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2009/aug/20/sports/chi-talk-brookfi
eld-dolphin-suitaug20

October’s winner: Wife kills husband, sues for his pension's survivor benefits http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/0930
09dnmetsmokingfeud.3ed620b.html

November’s winner: Neighbor sues woman for smoking in her own home http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/0930
09dnmetsmokingfeud.3ed620b.html

December’s winner: Holocaust denier sues Auschwitz survivor, alleging memoir contains "fantastical tales" http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2009-10-20/news/0910190465_1_elie-wie
sel-eric-hunt-holocaust

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