I agree that this is low, but why is the Lidle family suing the makers of the airplane? From what I understand, this crash was caused entirely by pilot error and not from any malfunction. Although I suppose the lawsuit intends to prove otherwise....

How is this "low" or "disgusting"? A person's residence was destroyed through no fault of their own. And it's not the family that's being sued - it's the estate of the person that caused the destruction. Totally makes sense to me. I think the real lawsuits-run-amok story here is the Lidle family suing the airplane manufacturer.

A broken window and loose bricks? Didn't a plane crash into this guys apartment?

Chris: The "estate" is the Lidle Estate. Meaning, they can't sue Lidle (deceased), so they are suing the owners of his body and finances-- which is his family since he did not will his estate to anyone else.

Mike: I thought the plane hit a woman's apartment directly, so maybe this is a neighboring apartment? I could be wrong on this one.

The guy is supposed to have a plane crash through his window and just shrug and say "Well, those are the breaks"?

Get real. Of course he's gonna sue, and you would too.

Yeah...can somebody tell me why this guy SHOULDN'T have a right to recovery in court? I know he's a dentist and all, and that nobody loves visiting the dentist, but still...he's well within his rights and is using the proper mechanisms to do so.

The only outrageous behavior here is that of the Lidle estate in suing the manufacturer of the airplane - now THAT'S a scumbag lowdown move done purely in hopes of an unjustified payday.

I read that this guy's apt is on the 43rd floor. Lidle crashed into the 30th, IIRC. Frivilous.

This would happen EVERY time a private plane crashes a person's apartment, unless the plane's insurance ponied up. It has nothing to do with it being a ballplayer. A month ago, an SUV suddenly crashed into my kitchen -- believe me, if the police & my homewoners insurance can find who is at fault, my insurnace company will be suing to collect for the damages.

P.S. - if the guy's apartment only suffered minor damages, that goes to the amount of the recovery, not the right to sue, or the appropriateness of suing.

This dude ain't exactly an upstanding dentist.

Wouldn't homeowners insurance cover this sort of thing?

I guess I shouldn't have said "low" without knowing all the facts, but I assumed that insurance was taking care of all the damages. My feeling from the article is they are asking for above and beyond that, which I still think is "low." The plane landed 13 floors below, does anyone honestly think $7 million in damage was done? Broken windows, some loose brick, and smoke damage?

Remember it is the 99% of lawyers who give the rest a bad name.

Why doesn't this guy have the right to sue? This is America, dammit. Apparently the Lidle family does and one of the victims of his stupidity doesn't? Is this the first guy in the world to sue for an excessive amount? And why should I care about Cory Lidle's family more than he did? He was the dumbass who flew into that building on a completely unnecessary flight path. And why does Larry's career as a dentist have anything to do with this lawsuit?
btw, nice link, Ben. I mean, the "investigative journalism" offered up on that site is comedic. Anonymous man says? Anonymous woman says? Larry filed the suit under the name Lawrence to avoid linkage to his dental practice? How about him using Lawrence on the legal filing because that's his LEGAL name? Duh....

I say let him sue. That is, unless you Yankee fans want to pay for the damage to this guy's apartment. I didn't think so.
Sorry, Yankee nation, you can't blame the Red Sox for this one. This is part of your "Yankee tradition", like it or not. Ha Ha. Now I hope the dentist wins to spite you.