Ok, my surly curmudgeons, this one's for you. In the day to day course of my practice, I come across the occasional client who is hell bent on really sticking it to the other guy. More important than the money, the protection of a business relationship or some other valuable asset is some deep-rooted desire to punish and huniliate the other guy.
Ignoring the obvious that folks like this do not believe in karma, I am frequently approached and requested by clients to undertake a course of action whose primary purpose is to make the litigation as painful as possible and the other guy's life similarly miserable.
My other favorite situation along this vein is when clients tell me that they've got someone backing them financially to make sure I do this (largely because the backer hates the other guy more than the actual client).
Hopefully, you are reading this in disbelief and are thinking to yourself, "I could not and would not ever do such a thing." Good for you. For those of you who think this sounds like one of your meetings with me or your own lawyer, you should know that stirring up litigation is illegal. Read on, friends.
As a matter of law, paying someone to pursue a lawsuit and acting as the person bringing that lawsuit for the principal purpose of stirring up litigation and being a general pain to someone else is illegal and a crime. By the way, this law applies to lawyers, too, who may be trying to suggest frivolous or questionable litigation for the principal purpose of annoying someone else.
The statute you need to know is 877.01. It says in pertinent part:
The 2008 Florida Statutes
Title XLVICRIMES
Chapter 877MISCELLANEOUS CRIMES
View Entire Chapter
877.01 Instigation of litigation; penalty.--
(1) Whoever gives, promises, offers or conspires to give, promise, or offer, to anyone any bribe, money, goods, presents, reward, or any valuable thing whatsoever with the intent and purpose of stirring up strife and litigation; or with intent and purpose of assisting, seeking out, influencing, or advising the accused, sick, injured, uninformed, or others to bring suit or seek professional legal services or advice, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
(2) Whoever, in any way, solicits, receives or accepts or agrees to receive or accept, or who conspires to receive or accept, any bribe, money, goods, presents, reward, or any valuable thing whatsoever, or any promise, contract, or agreement whatsoever, with the intent and purpose of stirring up strife and litigation; or with the intent or purpose of seeking out, influencing, assisting, or advising the accused, sick, injured, uninformed, or others to bring suit, or seek professional legal services, counsel, or advice, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
Play nice, everyone.
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