Some believe that a golfer cannot be held personally liable if his or her ball strikes another golfer so long as “FORE” is yelled.  But what happens if the golfer and the individual struck by the ball are one in the same? 

New Hampshire resident Paul Sanchez, 67, sued Candia Woods Golf Links after he was left blind in one eye by an errant golf ball.  It just so happens that it was Sanchez's own errant ball that struck him in the eye.

According to his attorney, Barry M. Scotch, Sanchez was golfing with some friends when a ball he hit bounced off a yardage-marker and “whacked him” in the right eye. 

Sanchez is seeking unspecified damages in the lawsuit, claiming that the golf course owners failed to warn him about the markers, which he further claims were improperly placed in the middle of the fairway and were made of material too rigid to be safe for the course.  The suit contends the course didn't warn Sanchez about the risk in the pro shop, on the scorecard or on any tee boxes.

"Before he could even -- pardon the expression -- blink, he was hit," Scotch said. "It just ricocheted right back at him."

Mary Ellen Sanchez, his wife, is also a party to the suit, claiming emotional damage.

The popular 18-hole course bills itself as the "Friendliest Course in New Hampshire."

—Source:  The Union Leader (Manchester, NH)

Some are wondering whether a name change will be in order for the Hooters restaurant chain should a man be successful in his lawsuit against the company.

A Texas man filed a lawsuit last month alleging sex discrimination in hiring practices after his application to be a server at Hooters in Corpus Christi was rejected because he's a man.  The lawsuit filed on behalf of 22-year-old Nikolai Grushevski seeks unspecified damages in recompense for a claim that “Hooters tries to circumvent the law by referring to its waiters as 'Hooters Girls.'”

"He doesn't want to be a Hooters Girl. He just wants to be a waiter," said Grushevski's attorney Martin Shellist, referring to the women in orange shorts and tight shirts who serve food and drinks to customers.

There was a similar lawsuit filed against Hooters over a decade ago in which the company settled and deemed the positions for kitchen and bartender were “gender neutral.”

"The good news is that when this happened the last time, Hooters benefitted from an avalanche of positive publicity and public support for keeping Hooters Girls, well, girls. If we lose this go around, you can next expect hairy-legged guys in the Rockettes to line up and male models in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. You wonder why people just can't leave good things alone,” Mike McNeil, vice president of marketing for Hooters of America, opined in a written statement.

"This move, of course, begs the question, 'Why would a man want to be a Hooters Girl?'" McNeil added. "In our opinion, he doesn't, and he is simply looking for an opportunity to be the lead plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit so he can try and make some money without working for it."

—Source:  The Houston Chronicle

Coca-Cola, maker of Vitaminwater, has been sued by the Center for Science in Public Interest (“CSPI”) over what is called “deceptive and unsubstantiated health claims” on the products' labels. 

The Washington-based self-proclaimed nutrition advocacy group claims the labels deceive customers into believing that Vitaminwater offers health benefits.  The Vitaminwater flavor names include “defense,” “rescue,” and “energy.”  CSPI said the drink was basically sugar water.

"Coke fears, probably correctly, that they will sell less soda as Americans become increasingly concerned with obesity, diabetes, and other conditions linked to diets too high in sugar. VitaminWater is Coke's attempt to dress up soda in a physician's white coat.  Underneath, its still sugar water, albeit sugar water that costs about ten bucks a gallon," CSPI litigation director Steve Gardner said.

Coca-Cola calls the suit “ridiculous,” saying Vitaminwater's labels are accurate.  According to one label, the bottle lists six vitamins plus folic acid at 50 percent of daily values.

"This is a ridiculous and ludicrous lawsuit. Glaceau Vitaminwater is a great tasting, hydrating beverage with essential vitamins and water, with labels showing calorie content," the company stated while reacting to the class action lawsuit filed in US District Court in the Northern District of California.

"Filing a lawsuit is an opportunistic PR stunt. This is not about protecting the public interest. This is about grandstanding at a time when CSPI is receiving very little attention,” a Coca-Cola statement added.

—Sources:  Boston Globe and Culinologyonline.com

The State of Florida recently settled a lawsuit alleging that the state illegally sold drivers' personal information to marketing firms over a four-year period in violation of a federal law barring the practice.  The settlement results in a $1.00 credit to each driver who renews a license, car registration or state-issued ID between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010.

The four Florida residents who brought the suit will each get $3,000.  And what about the five law firms that pursued the case?  Well, they'll divide up $2.85 million in legal fees.

The anticipated $10.4 million payout to settle the lawsuit spells bad news for Florida, which already faces a $3.5 billion deficit.  Governor Charlie Crist and the Cabinet approved the agreement last summer; the Legislature now must appropriate the money.  The state formally denied any wrongdoing.

According to news reports, Senator Carey Baker (R-Eustis) said it looks to him as though consumers should have gotten more.  “The victim really doesn't benefit very much, and the attorneys make out on attorneys' fees,” he said.

—Source:  St. Petersburg Times