Despite not being a resident in the City of Hermosa Beach, I have the privilege of serving as a substitute teacher on an ongoing basis.
I like Hermosa Beach. I am dismayed, therefore, to read about this ongoing Macpherson lawsuit.
At what point will the American people, specifically the residents of Hermosa Beach, cry "Enough is enough"? It is unconscionable for any corporation to drag a city through years of litigation and appeals over a breach of contract, whatever the facts of the case may be.
Even if Macpherson were to win this multimillion dollar lawsuit, would they ever see a dime? There is something absolute crude and unbelievable about any entity fleecing an entire municipality over a breach of contract.
The citizens of Hermosa Beach deserve city representatives who focus on the day-to-day needs of the community. It is just plain wrong to witness city officials embroiled in these long-term super-lawsuits, which are designed to wear out the other side by an attrition of paper work, legal motions, and preliminary hearings.
Whatever Macpherson Oil claims to have lost, is it really worth all of this ongoing litigation? The United States Government, or at least the State of California, needs to initiate some kind of tort reform. Cases that go to court must make their arguments in an allotted amount of time. The losing part in a lawsuit would have to pay the legal fees of the party not found liable for any wrongdoing. In the future, municipal governments interested in doing business with major corporations deserve to limit their involvement in a control to the stakeholders in office when a contract was drawn up and signed, but nothing beyond that.
The country, the cities, and the people are all facing touch economic times. The last thing that any municipal government should have to endure is an ongoing lawsuit with no end in sight.