I have heard a lot about frivolous claims, malingering victims and greedy lawyers--I do not think that fits my situation but what effect will this attitude have on my legal rights?

ANSWER: The American public has been led to believe that there are too many lawsuits, that any lawsuit lost is frivolous, that all injured people are gaming the system and that all lawyers greedily help them. Many people feel that way, that is until they have been injured as a result of the negligence of another and find their health, their finances and their very life in turmoil. You may be in that situation already and have come to realize that the deck is stacked against you. And you will also eventually realize that regardless of whether or not you are financially compensated for your damages, your life will never be the same again. Without access to the civil justice system through your Seventh Amendment right to trial by jury, you would not stand a chance of recovering fair and adequate compensation. All the evidence you need to prove this point is to look at the legal systems in other countries that do not have a well-developed sense of civil justice and particularly a constitutional right to trial by jury. In fact, the attacks on our civil justice system that have been mounted by powerful special interest groups, from the insurance industry to product manufacturers and now even the medical community, are really attacks on your right to trial by jury. Our civil jurors are the great equalizer. They use their collective common sense to dispense justice. Corporations do not like being judged by a small group of regular and common people but that is often the only thing that can change corporate behavior and protect you. And the insurance industry would not even exist but for the civil justice system as its entire business is to collect premiums in order to pay claims. Remember, when you hear the unsupported claims of the tort reform movement you are being brainwashed to give up your civil rights, as well as those of your fellow citizens. Be careful or it may be too late before you realize what you have lost-when you have a personal injury claim yourself.