Many of us read about the administrative law judge from Washington who sued a local dry cleaner for $65 million dollars for losing a pair of pants. The defendants, small-business owners, offered generous amounts of money (first $3,000 then $4,600 and finally up to $12,500) to settle the case out of court, but the plaintiff resisted any urge he might have to relieve our courts of further burden by continuing the case.

Trial is set for next June, and it is on its second judge.

This truly outrageous example of lawsuit abuse has been lambasted throughout the country for weeks. In all forms of media, from newspapers to talk radio, the American public has shown its disdain for this behavior.

Too many of us forget, however, that the most powerful way citizens can voice their outrage and help put an end to abusive litigation is by serving on a jury.

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Not enough of us bother to show up for jury duty when called — only 37 percent in Baltimore. Who bears the burden when citizens fail to act? Very often the defendants in these cases represent the heart of our communities and the backbone of our economy: small businesses.

A recent NERA Economic consulting analysis found that small-businesses shoulder 69 percent of business tort liability costs but take in only 19 percent of business revenues. Of the $98 billion in tort costs paid by small businesses in 2005, more than 20 percent was paid out of pocket, rather than through insurance.

Another recent survey, by Harris Interactive, found that 62 percent of small-business owners and managers make business decisions to avoid lawsuits, including raising product or service prices, making some products and services unavailable, and even cutting employee benefits.

The same percentage of small business owners said they could grow their business if they were protected from abusive lawsuits.

Small businesses are crucial to the economy — they are responsible for three-quarters of new job creation and employ more than half of all private-sector employees. Frivolous lawsuits, which continue to multiply year after year, pose a real threat to our jobs, our communities and our entire economy.

If we wonder why we are losing the character of our small towns and communities to larger businesses, we should closely examine the price drawn-out, frivolous lawsuits impose on our society. A local coffee shop or hardware store is quickly replaced by a large national chain that is better able to absorb the costs of doing business in such a litigious environment. Our legal system seems to put all the weapons in the hands of personal injury lawyers who file as many lawsuits as possible because they’ll get rich if one in 100 actually hits the jackpot. Small businesses offer a choice target because they are essentially defenseless to prevent this.

So what is a small business to do? Some must pass the extended costs on to the consumer in the form of higher prices. But many, as you can imagine, cave under the weight of this onslaught.

A 2005 National Federation of Independent Business poll found that on average, it costs $5,000 for a small business to settle one legal dispute, which is 10 percent of an average small business owner’s salary. It is easy to see how frivolous lawsuits, even unsuccessful ones, can force a small-business to close its doors.

Citizens can do their part to protect our small businesses from abusive lawsuits and help restore balance and fairness to the civil justice system by serving on a jury when called. By considering the facts as presented to them and returning verdicts based on their best interpretation of the facts, jurors make sure our courts are used for justice, not greed.

The outcry over frivolous lawsuits like the dry cleaning case described above shows that the public is fed up with excessive awards and abusive personal injury lawyer tactics. It is time we start seeing that outrage acted out in our courtrooms by a simple act of citizenship-jury service.

Mike Kostinsky is the owner of Sorrento of Arbutus and the Maryland Leadership Council Chairman of the National Federation of Independent Business. Todd Lamb is the executive director of Maryland Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.