Laboratory Informatics Lawsuits

Over the last two days, I’d been writing about how subcontracting down too many layers causes problems for laboratory informatics projects (http://outonalims.com/2011/02/22/subcontracting-too-many-times/). The first post elicited a comment about lawsuits. The subject of lawsuits in our industry is worth commenting on as a post all its own and that’s the topic, today.

Insurance
I had made the comment in a comment to the post which I just gave the link to that many companies are required to purchase insurance against lawsuits. Some of my customers actually require this of mine and other vendors in the event that we potentially cause some damage. Thus, they don’t worry about the size of our company are its solvency, necessarily, but whether we carry enough insurance to cover potential damage.

So far, I’ve not had anyone make a claim against my insurance nor have I heard of anyone making such a claim. The insurance is there as a kind of security blanket more than anything else, it seems.

Lawsuits
Industry insiders who have been around any length of time have heard of a number of lawsuits, over the years. They tend to be rare, but they do pop-up, once in awhile. Customers sometimes become so frustrated with their projects that they feel they have no other recourse. However, with this said, I’ve never heard of a lawsuit actually going through, let along a customer getting any relief by doing this. I’m not saying it’s not possible, just that I’ve never heard of it. So, as rare as the lawsuits are, compensation from them is even rarer.

First of all, it sounds as if proving such a lawsuit is EXTREMELY difficult, obvious as the problems might seem to the customer. Also, when a customer threatens to sue or starts a lawsuit, unexpected things can happen. For one, the software vendor might stop supporting the software. For those who think their support is bad, having no support at all is worse than you might imagine. Also, I have heard that when software vendors and/or services providers have been sued, some will declare bankruptcy to get out of the lawsuit and then find a way to restart the business to keep operating. I don’t know if this is true. I also don’t know if someone could restart using the same business name or would need a new name.

Bottom Line
I’m not a lawyer. I wouldn’t tell a customer not to bother trying to sue a company they think has done them harm. However, from what I’ve seen, my opinion is that, if the relationship has gotten so bad that a customer thinks that’s their only recourse, then it is probably too late to salvage the project. Do whatever you can to keep it from getting there. Most importantly, as angry as you might be, keep your temper and negotiate at all times. Don’t let your temper get the better of you because it’s your project that can suffer. Don’t make it about getting “what’s due to you” or “making them pay” or “forcing them to do what’s right” as much as making sure your project doesn’t suffer.

Gloria Metrick
GeoMetrick Enterprises
http://www.GeoMetrick.com/