Its hard to believe, I know, but some people do not like lawyers much.  One man has been wearing a pig costume and protesting in front of the state bar headquarters in Austin.  See post.  He says he wants the rules changed so that "arbitration" (apparently meaning mediation) comes before discovery. He says he spent over $200,000 on legal fees in a dispute over a parcel of land worth $4,000.  He complains that he spent $40,000 or so before going to what he calls arbitration, where the case did not settle.  He finally lost his case on appeal.  He stayed in the lawsuit only so he could get his attorney’s fees back (which would have only been possible if he had won or settled). 

Eric A. Anderson has also protested at the Travis County Courthouse.  He will not name his lawyer. 

I used to do collections work.  I would recommend to my client that any amount below $5,000, they should file on their own in Justice of the Peace court.  And, of course, once my attorney’s fees became one-half or more of the amount owed, it was time to consider whether this was a debt worth pursuing.  I would discuss frankly with my  client how bad did they want to sue this person.  Quitting a lawsuit is not easy, sometimes.  We get "worked up" in the middle of a lawsuit.  But, we need to always remember that every lawsuit is essentially a business decision.  Cost benefit analysis must apply.