united-states civil-law
Can someone just sue anyone for anything?
<p>I read in <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/woman-sues-southwest-says-airline-ejected-her-removing-mask-drink-water-2022-01-18/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this article</a> that a woman is suing Southwest airlines for $10 million because she was forced to wear a mask.</p>
<p>This sounds absurd to me. Can someone just arbitrarily demand millions of dollars? If not, how do lawsuits work?</p>

<blockquote>
<p>Can you just sue anyone for anything?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>But being able to sue falls nowhere near being able to win.</p>
<p>To sue literally means to deliver properly formatted papers to the court, pay the fees, and deliver copies to the other party. Bingo! You are already suing!</p>
<p>Then what? That's the real question.</p>

<p>Since you didn’t mention the country: In Germany, you can sue anyone for a large amount if you wish to. However, the court will set court fees and lawyer fees as a percentage of the amount that is in dispute (here: $10 million, court fees and lawyer fees will be in the ten thousands).</p>
<p>The loser pays. But should you actually win $10,000 (unlikely), you lost 99.9% because you asked for $10 million, so you have to pay 99.9% of all the fees. So this is a <em>very</em> bad and costly plan.</p>

<p>Yes, it is true that in the US, anybody can sue anybody for anything.</p>
<p>However, it is worth noting that there are also recourses when cases are filed without any merit. For example, a defendant can countersue for frivolous lawsuit or abuse of process if a lawsuit is simply ridiculous or pure harassment. It is also possible that the lawyer could face penalties from the bar association (potentially up to and including disbarment).</p>
<p>Furthermore, many US jurisdictions have laws regarding vexatious litigation. For example, in California, someone who chronically files frivolous legal actions can be added to a list of vexatious litigants, in which case they are barred from filing any further actions without permission from a judge.</p>
<p><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexatious_litigation" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexatious_litigation</a></p>
