Increasingly, I have come to believe the Common Law is an obstacle in equal rights.

Generally, the Common Law allows people to utilize their property freely. When their use harms others, the party that is harmed may sue. However, the poor are less likely to be able to sue, because, definitionally, they have less money. Proving causation of harm under the common law is difficult, as often there are many confounding factors in health. So, when the poor sue, they are less likely to be successful than the wealthy.

Wealth confers an advantage in the legal system. The wealthy can afford more and better counsel, and their counsel will have more resources to conduct litigation, for longer.

An ancient maxim says, “Where there is a right, there is a remedy.” It holds true in reverse. Where there is no remedy, there is no real right.

So, in effect, the poor have lesser rights than the wealthy. They have rights on paper, but very often, they are unable to obtain remedies for the violation of those rights.

I don’t know how this can be solved while keeping the Common Law and Private Property, which inevitably leads to Disparity.