Crazy Personal Injury Law

An emailer sent me a link to a commentary in the Houston Chronicle that began like this:

A Brownsville jury had hardly begun its second day of deliberations after a six-week trial when its forewoman sent a note to the judge that virtually guaranteed there would not be a third day. The issue was whether a Ford Explorer caused a tragic rollover accident because of faulty design. But the note did not deal with the testimony of competing experts. In only nine words it asked an unambiguous question: “What is the maximum amount that can be awarded?”

If you think that's amazing, the story behind it is more shocking.