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Psychopathology and Hyperlitigious Litigants

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Psychopathology and Hyperlitigious Litigants REGULAR ARTICLE I’ll See You in Court...Again: Psychopathology and Hyperlitigious Litigants C. Adam Coffey, MS, Stanley L. Brodsky, PhD, and David M. Sams, JD, LLM Persistent litigation is a problem in many legal jurisdictions and is costly at individual and systemic levels. This phenomenon is referred to as “querulous” behavior in psychiatric literature, whereas legal discourse refers to it as “vexatious litigation.” We refer to this phenomenon as “hyperlitigious behavior” and those who engage in these actions as “hyperlitigious litigants.” Hyperlitigious litigants and hyperlitigious behavior were once the focus of a considerable amount of psychiatric literature, but research devoted to these topics has declined over the past half century. A review of the published literature on hyperlitigious behavior in European and English-speaking countries highlights geographic differences in the conceptualization and management of this behavior. We provide an alternative framework to consider the motivation to engage in hyperlitigious behavior and suggest three strategies for mental health professionals who interact with these individuals. Finally, we call for a revival of discussions and research within the English-speaking psychiatric community to facilitate more informed decisions regarding the management and treatment of hyperlitigious behavior. J Am Acad Psychiatry Law 45:62–71, 2017 Again? How many times do you want me to sue them? If “Then there is Snell versus everybody else.” While memory serves me correctly, this will be the 17th time you have brought suit over the same issue!1 obviously comical, Snell’s character nicely illustrates the concept of the hyperlitigious person. Fans of the British TV comedy Kingdom,1 which Although the quote refers to a fictional character, it aired from 2007 to 2009, may recognize this quota- may have reminded you of a problem client or examinee tion. The show’s main character, Peter Kingdom with whom you have interacted or heard about over the played by Stephen Fry, speaks these words to the course of your career. Forensic mental health profes- show’s antihero, Sidney Snell. Snell is well known by sionals, lawyers, judges, and court clerks have little dif- the show’s other characters for his propensity to file ficulty conjuring up a story of at least one individual unmerited or futile lawsuits against members of the whom they have encountered who is like Sidney Snell. city council. When told that he has brought 17 suits These clients frequently inhabit the doorways of law against the city council, Snell quickly corrects Peter, offices and courthouses, each time with a new com- telling him he has actually filed 18 suits against them. plaint against an individual or a group of people. The After Snell leaves, Peter describes his case load to his cost or consequences of litigation are sometimes trivial secretary, colorfully portraying Snell’s character by to these clients, whereas retribution for a real or imag- listing a few of his current cases before quipping, ined slight or injustice is their foremost priority. These individuals and their behaviors are the sub- Mr. Coffey is a Student and Dr. Brodsky is Professor Emeritus and Scholar in Residence, Department of Psychology, The University of Alabama, ject of this article. The current article proposes a new, Tuscaloosa, AL, Mr. Sams is an attorney with the Community Tax Law nonpejorative label for the behavior and examines Project in Richmond, VA. Address correspondence to: C. Adam Coffey, Psychology Department, The University of Alabama; Tuscaloosa, Ala- historical and geographical differences in the concep- bama 35487-0348. E-mail: [email protected]. tualization of the phenomenon. An alternative con- Disclosures of financial or other potential conflicts of interest: None. ceptualization is proposed and discussed in the con- 62 The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Coffey, Brodsky, and Sams text of the psychiatric literature and real-world A subset of individuals may seemingly meet the examples. The role of the forensic clinician is exam- proposed definition, although they do not qualify as ined, including assessment and treatment of such in- hyperlitigious. That is, this definition does not in- dividuals. Finally, we encourage a revival of attention clude persons or entities that, because of their posi- and propose directions for future research about this tions or professions, are forced to be involved in a oft-neglected phenomenon. large number of lawsuits for a primarily occupational or legal purpose. For example, a state attorney’s office would not be considered hyperlitigious, because the Hyperlitigious Persons nature of the office requires numerous filings. Simi- Persistent litigation has been described across pro- larly, a large-scale residential landlord would not be fessions in different ways. Legally, it is referred to as considered hyperlitigious because of having to file “vexatious litigation,” whereas medically it has been numerous eviction actions. The state’s attorney and diagnosed as “querulous paranoia” and “litigious landlord examples lack the nonlegal, nonorganiza- paranoia.”12 Other critical names include “cranks,” tional purposes found in the excessive use of the “injustice collectors,” “serial pests,” and “wrecks of court system by a hyperlitigious litigant. Conversely, justice.”3 In general, these terms describe an individ- the nature of a person’s position or profession should ual who exhibits several of the following qualities: not exempt an actor from the application of the def- inition of hyperlitigious behavior if they exhibit some Initiates dozens or hundreds of suits. of the above traits in a manner incongruous to their Has a life that revolves around the development relevant professional standards. and progress of litigation. History of Hyperlitigious Behavior Is not deterred by repeated negative outcomes. Although it is referred to by different names in Files suits that are trivial or unfounded. different professional fields, as well as in different Invests great amounts of time in litigation. parts of the world, the concept of hyperlitigious be- havior is a well-documented phenomenon through- Is a known and persistent presence for lawyers, 4 judges, and clerks. out history. Recently, Benjamin Levy published a two-part article on the history of this behavior in For the purposes of this article, we will refer to which he discussed historical origins and geographi- these individuals as “hyperlitigious” persons. We cal differences in how excessive litigation has been formed this term by joining the prefix hyper, mean- conceptualized and researched. In Part 1 of his arti- ing over or excessive, and the word litigious, meaning cle, he traced the history of “paranoia querulans” and concerned with lawsuits or litigation. This term is the “litigant’s delusion” in France and in German- more neutral than previously used terms such as speaking countries. In Part 2 of the article, he dis- querulous, paranoid, and vexatious that are pejora- cussed the history of querulous behavior and vexa- tive and infer psychopathology. The term hyperliti- tious litigation in English-speaking countries: the gious is meant to be descriptive and free of inferences United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.5 regarding the behavior’s origins or the individual’s Before we delve further into our own conceptualiza- level of psychological functioning. tions of such litigants, we will recapitulate and ex- A hyperlitigious person is an individual who pand upon the Levy reviews. makes excessive and egregious use of the legal system for a primarily nonlegal purpose. It should be noted Germany: The Litigant’s Delusion and Paranoia that, although there is usually a legal purpose for Querulans their suits, the legal purpose is not paramount to the The first recorded reference to excessive involve- needs of the client. We also note that this is not a ment with the legal system was found in Aristo- single trait but rather a grouping of common charac- phanes’ play, The Wasps. Written in 422 BCE, the teristics of hyperlitigious behavior. A litigant may play depicted the statesman Philocleon who was la- exhibit only some of the above characteristics in an beled a “trialophile” because he was addicted to court exaggerated manner and still fall within the construct proceedings. This character would do anything to of the hyperlitigious person. serve on a jury because he enjoyed passing judgment. Volume 45, Number 1, 2017 63 Psychopathology and Hyperlitigious Litigants In Aristophanes’ original text, Philocleon recognized were driven to act by authentic legal injustices they the power given to him by jury service and proudly experienced rather than by delusional beliefs. There- exclaimed, “(t)he hand of power is on me.”6 In sub- fore, the querulants’ difficulties were psychogenic, sequent translations of this passage from The Wasps, suggesting psychological origins. Paranoia, by con- Philocleon declared a desire to “go with you to the trast, involved imagined events and was considered a law-court and do all the harm I can.”7 The play sat- constitutional disorder, which suggested physical irized the political climate of ancient Athens, which origins. Aristophanes believed was responsible for producing Attributing hyperlitigious behavior to psycholog- trialophiles.8 ical origins also implied that it could be treated and In 1668, French playwright Racine wrote and pro- managed by psychologists and psychiatrists. This duced
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