In the united states, lawyers may take cases for clients on a contingency basis (i.e., a share of the proceeds) when the case may have little or no merit. They are able to do this because they have no fear that the court will assess court costs against them. Since the trial judges are usually elected on a regular basis for the position and are reluctant to award court costs against a litigant. Businesses are usually the target of many these cases and obliged to defend against meritless claims at high cost in legal fees. Provincial legislation in some provinces allows lawyers to take cases on a contingency basis, but judges in Canada are not elected and generally award costs against the "loser" in a case. This may mean that the losing plaintiff bears the costs in a meritless law suit.

Should the lawyers who bring meritless causes before the courts be held personally liable for all of the costs of the cases?