Litigation

In many respects, Chile is a lot like the United States

By Carter Wood

From Der Spiegel, "After Rescue, The Fight for Compensation Begins":

Now that the 33 Chilean miners have been rescued, a top lawyer is preparing to sue for damages. He is unwilling to say how much he will ask for, but he expects it to be an open-and-shut case. In the meantime, he is waiting for things to calm down before he makes his first move.

The attorney is Edgardo Reinoso Lundstedt.

U.S. manufacturers produced some of the tools that aided in the rescue of the Chilean miners. One wonders whether U.S. lawyers will provide their expertise, as well.

Shortly after meeting with Reinoso, Mayor Gonzalez mentioned a sum. She felt that $1 million (?709,000) per miner would be suitable compensation. In Chile, damage suits function in much the same way as they do in the United States. Reinoso will be paid a percentage of the damage award. If he loses the case, he will have provided his services free of charge. But if he wins -- and Reinoso doesn't even take on cases he thinks he could lose -- he will be entitled to some of the money.

"How much will that be?" Reinoso smiles. "Oh, it's just money. Let's talk about art instead. Let's ignore all the fuss out there."

Yep, lots of similarities.

Full post as published by Point of Law on October 18, 2010 (boomark / email).