Quote:
Originally Posted by tuco99
Then why do you "doubt" they were sued?
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Kevin is 100% right.
If they weren't members at the time, then they didn't owe the plaintiff a duty, and couldn't breach that duty, and couldn't be sued.
It would be a relatively simple matter to get those defendants dismissed from the suit for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.
Here's what is happening here:
The fraternity chapter is not incorporated. It does not have a legal status which allows it to be sued. To sue the organization, you have to sue the members.
From the plaintiff's attorney perspective, if he sues each individual member, each homeowner's insurance policy may be brought into the suit. Since liability insurance on a homeowner's policy is often around the value of the house, that means there may be a whole lot of $200,000+ insurance policies stacked up in this case. That's a very deep set of pockets. The plaintiff's attorney is a clever boy/girl.
I wonder if the defendants can argue that they are covered by the incorporation of the national organization -- ie. they are just agents of the national organization which is incorporated and don't have a separate legal status?