The Last-Clear-Chance Rule: Allowing You to Be Sued for the Stupidity of Other People

Just for the sake of argument, let's say your car broke down out on the outskirts of your town, on some bleak and deserted stretch of rode where neighbors were glad for the invention of the telephone because it meant no more two mile walks just to find out that Mabel ran out of sugar yesterday. And let's say there is a ditch off to the side of the road so you don't have a whole heckuva lot of room to work with and you wind up with maybe ten inches to a foot between your passenger door and the asphalt pavement of the highway. Now this car of yours was just in the shop less than a month ago for an oil change and you're a little upset that whatever caused the engine to hiccup to a stop wasn't noticed by your otherwise reliable mechanic. The annoyance is so great that you forget to turn on your hazard lights. In fact, you don't take any steps at all to guarantee your own safety from being sideswiped by some rich guy in a Ferrari or some dork in a Camaro.

But let's say that some football-tossing, Bud-drinking, Journey-listening dork in a Camaro comes along that bleak stretch of highway, and he's not fiddling with his radio or talking on his cell phone or being on the receiving end of French loving from his girlfriend but it's kind of dark out and visibility isn't that great and goshdarnit if he doesn't swerve over a little too much to the right and wind up hitting your car in the back, sending it flying into the ditch, along with you as well. Your car is totaled and your collarbone is fractured and if you were mad before, well, now you're just totally litigious. So you take Mr. Camaro to court and sue him for grossly negligent driving. Do you think you'll win?