The judiciary has allowed the "deep- pockets" theory to prevail: Companies with only the most distant, tangential connection to a case have been hit with huge liability judgments.
People want to get money back, fine go after the truly deep-pockets who caused this mess: Ackman, Soros, Einhorn, Paulson, Chanos, and the other shorts who abused mark-to-market and naked short selling.
Depending upon your viewpoint, the grandly named Mass Torts Made Perfect, a recent confab of plaintiff lawyers in Las Vegas, (1) illustrates America's greatness as a nation with the rule of law or (2) shows the appalling consequences of deep-pockets liability.