“Tort costs were $880 per U.S. citizen in 2005, meaning the average American family of four paid a ‘litigation tax’ of more than $3,500 due to increased costs from lawsuits and other liability expenses that force businesses to raise the price of products and services. That cost is equivalent to nearly an 8 percent tax on wages.”

I’ve now added “rent seeking” to my vocabulary. What a useful way to describe why so many lawyers are worse than unproductive citizens.