- [Narrator] Thanks to CuriosityStream for keeping Legal Eagle in the air. - Hello, did somebody say "lawyer?" Richard A. Bottomfeeder, attorney at law. - I take exception to that. Lawyers are not bottom feeders, even when they are literal
bottom-feeding fish. (playful music) Hey legal eagles, it's time
to think like a lawyer, and today we are covering
the highly-requested episode of SpongeBob Squarepants,
Krabs versus Plankton. This will probably be the last cartoon I cover for a while, you
can check out my breakdowns of The Simpsons and South Park down in the description below. I thought it would be fun to end with an example of maritime law, and SpongeBob Squarepants
technically qualifies. (buzzer buzzes)
- I surrender! - Be sure to comment in
the form of an objection, which I'll either sustain or overrule, and stick around until
the end of the video where I give SpongeBob Squarepants a grade for legal realism. So without further ado, let's dig in to this episode of SpongeBob Squarepants, Krabs versus Plankton. (playful music) Okay so Plankton is
going to the Krusty Krab in order to steal the recipe
for the Krusty Burger. Wait, no no no, that's The Simpsons. - D'oh! - He's going to steal the
recipe for the Krabby Patty, okay, that's it, the Krabby Patty, which is probably some
sort of trade secret in the same way that
Kentucky Fried Chicken is a trade secret or Coca
Cola is a trade secret, but I'm guessing Plankton
probably does this on more than one occasion,
kinda like Wile E. Coyote. - That was easy, maybe today is the day I'm gonna steal the Krabby
Patty formula. (grunts) - All right, a classic slip and fall case. There is an entire genre of lawsuits devoted to exactly this kind of thing, this kind of personal injury, because it's so easy to fake
your injuries like this. So this is the kind of
thing that gives lawyers and lawsuits a bad name. - Look at you, Plankton, once again you've fallen flat on your back in another pathetic attempt
to steal me formula. Though you tried and tried, you haven't had the smallest nibble of my delicious formula,
and you never will! (laughs) - I mean, the guy has
already injured himself, there's no reason to be
mean to him and taunt him when he's on the ground. Not a good idea for a restaurant
owner to be that malicious. - How do you sleep at night knowing you're a complete
failure? (laughs) - There really should be a wet floor sign. - Yeah, if that were me who slipped, I'd sue Old Man Krabs for all he's got. - You know, that's a very good point. There probably should be a
wet floor sign in the vicinity when someone is mopping up the floor, although I query how
you can mop up a floor and have standing water when you're literally under water in the first place. Putting that aside for the moment, I think these patrons
are absolutely right, that there should be a wet
floor sign in the vicinity. - Does that include the
Krabby Patty formula? - Of course. (pensive music)
(laughs) - Oh the pain! I can't feel my arms and legs, I think they're broken. - Do plankton have arms and legs? - I'll sue for my pain and suffering. - Sue? - Oh, that looks bad. - Uh-oh. - Poor little man. - Hold up a second. Plankton, we don't need to drag this little incident into court, do we? - Well, if you transfer the
Krabby Patty formula to me, I'll forget your gross negligence. - Scoundrel, you'll have my formula when you pry it from me lifeless claws. (Plankton laughs) - Yeah, so this is actually based off of the real-life case of
Whelan versus Van Natta, where someone went to a shop legally, but then snuck around
in a private residence that was attached to the shop. The issue at hand is a question of being an invitee versus a trespasser. An invitee is someone that is there for regular business purposes, and a trespasser is
someone who does not have permission to be on the premises, and generally speaking,
a landowner must act as a reasonable person
would toward invitees, and to figure out what a
reasonable person would do, you look towards others who
are in exactly the same place. Given that we see wet floor
signs just about everywhere, you can bet a reasonable restaurant owner would probably put one out if
they were mopping the floor, or they probably wouldn't
leave standing water in your restaurant in the first place where people can trip and fall. Now with respect to trespassers though, a restaurant owner or
a landowner doesn't owe the same duty of care. Basically if someone is
trespassing on your property, your only obligation is to not hide dangerous things or create
dangerous situations on the premises, like the guy who created a shotgun booby trap to punish people who were breaking into his house. (evil laughing) You know, what's really
interesting about this particular case is that
California did away with that invitee trespasser distinction and replaced it with a sort of general reasonable person standard. In the case of Rowland verus Christian, the invitee trespasser
distinction was found to be unhelpful by the court
and the court just held that the landowner owes a duty
to act as a reasonable man, now a reasonable person,
in sort of general. So it doesn't really
matter what the status of the person who was
injured on the property is, you just always have to
act as a reasonable person. Mr. Krabs has not put out the sign that says there's a wet floor, and so he's probably liable
under the California standard. - See you in court, Krabs. I'm mean, oh the pain,
the deep, frying pain. - Now of course, Plankton
is malingering here and he's faking all of his injuries, so that sort of shows you
that he hasn't actually suffered any damages here
in this particular case, and he's really perpetrating a fraud on both Krabs and the court. But sometimes you can have a court case where you're entitled to
one dollar in damages, because I think Krabs may
have been in the wrong to not have a sign out with
respect to everybody else, and so Plankton fell, he
just didn't really have much damage as a result of that, so he might be entitled to what are called nominal damages and a jury might end up awarding him one dollar instead of the billions and the recipe
that he's actually seeking. - I'm in a blue ruin, I'm doomed. - Don't worry, Mr. Krabs,
I will do whatever it takes to keep the Krusty Krab
formula from getting into Plankton's evil hands. - What I really need is a good lawyer. - Hello, did somebody say "lawyer?" Richard A. Bottomfeeder, attorney at law. - I take exception to that. Lawyers are not bottom feeders, even when they are literal
bottom-feeding fish. - I couldn't help but notice
that despicable display. - So uh, how much is this gonna cost me? - Actually, I won't charge
a dime unless we win. (cash register clinks) - Yeah, that's a pretty
standard thing for a plaintiff's attorney to charge, especially
in a personal injury lawsuit because of the risk
and generally speaking, if you're a plaintiff in
a personal injury case, you probably don't have the fees to pay someone hundreds of
dollars an hour to represent you, so a plaintiff's lawyer in
this particular situation would probably ask for
somewhere in the neighborhood of 35 to 50% of any recovery. While it sounds like a lot, the lawyer is actually
in a precarious position where number one, the lawyer
might not recover anything, and number two, the lawyer has to front a lot of the court fees and
court costs that go along with a lawsuit, which can
add up pretty quickly. - In fact, I think we should counter sue for everything Plankton owns. (cash register clinks) - That, so that is kind of a real thing. You are allowed to counter sue. Generally, what people do is they file what are called compulsory counterclaims, so they are things that
arise from the same set of facts, and here
Krabs doesn't really have any compulsory counterclaims, there's nothing that must be brought at the same time that
results from the same nexus of facts that the
lawsuit arises from. The opposite of that is a
permissive counterclaim, which you can bring in the same action or you can bring it whenever you want, because it doesn't really
relate to the claim at hand, and that's what this lawyer
is asking to bring in, is whatever past deeds have happened. There is some efficiency
gained because you're already hashing out this claim
against the same party, but courts don't really like
permissive counterclaims, because it really multiplies
the number of things that they have to deal with. (SpongeBob hums) - [SpongeBob] Mr. Krabs? - What is it, lad? - I thought you might
want to hear my testimony for when you call me
as a character witness. I've been rehearsing it. - Actually SpongeBob, we won't be needing any testimony from you. Why you'll be more of a uh, (whispering) of a liability than an asset. - Yeah, and also you wouldn't
really have a character witness in a slip and fall
case like this anyway. Character witness has no bearing on whether negligence has occurred here, whether there was a duty, whether it was a breach of that duty, it just, there's no reason
you would complicate things, and it's a good idea not to call SpongeBob Squarepants to the stand. - But I-- - Now run along, make things ship shape for my victory celebration. I've gotta get to the courthouse early, there's only a few free parking places. - Oh this is gonna be a slam dunk. (yelling) - Oh no! Mr. Krabs's lawyer, speak to me. - Wracked with pain. - So, sometimes this does actually happen. Sometimes the lead trial
counsel is rendered incapacitated and you have to
pick up with somebody else. In fact, when I interviewed
my friend Brent Wisner, who was the lead trial
counsel in the Monsanto Round Up cases, the
original lead trial counsel who was slated to handle everything was injured in a wind surfing accident just weeks before trial,
so he had to pick up on the eve of trial and hand
out the whole thing himself before he got a $2 billion verdict, so it does happen from time to time. (tense music) - I'll give you one last chance. I'll drop the charges if
you give me the formula. - Never, you little whelp! (audience gasps) - Ow, ow, my wittle arms.
(audience gasps) - What, no, I didn't lay a claw on him. - Ow, my other arm, ow. - He's lying! - I will say this is a little ridiculous. It doesn't make any
sense that Plankton would actually fight Krabs,
I don't think plankton actually even have arms, and I don't even think
crabs and plankton interact with each other in the ocean anyway. If only there were a biologist that could rank these animals on some sort of a tier. (twinkling) - [Narrator] Ocean-dwelling
crabs and zooplankton interact quite frequently
in the reef meta. SpongeBob's Plankton is most likely based on the species of plankton
called the copepod, a microscopic animal
that's actually in the same sub-phylum as Mr. Krabs, since
they're both crustaceans. Similar to how those battles
are depicted in the show, one on one it's really no contest. Crab builds that use the
filter feeding ability actually directly target plankton mains as their main source of XP. So yeah, as it turns out, SpongeBob's depiction
of the one-sided rivalry between Mr. Krabs and Plankton is actually fairly reasonable. If you're interested in what the tier list for the rest of the Bikini
Bottom residents looks like, be sure to check out my
channel after you're done here. - Huh, well that's good
to know, thanks TierZoo. Now let's get back to the trial. - Mr. Krabs, where is your attorney? - I don't know where he could be. (door slams)
(crowd gasps) - Here I am. - Thank you for joining us, Mr.? - SpongeBob Lawyerpants, your Honor. - Yeah, that is the
unauthorized practice of law. You are not allowed to
represent other people if you have not gone to law
school and passed the bar, and SpongeBob would face
serious repercussions from pretending to be a lawyer right now. - What are you doing here, SpongeBob? - Your lawyer uh, fell down on the job, but don't worry Mr. Krabs, I have everything under
control, it's all in here. - Really? - Yup, right-- - Yeah, that's not gonna end well. - Is there a problem? - Uh, your lawyer didn't
give me the combination. - Is the plaintiff ready to proceed? - Yes, your Honor, I'll try, ow, ow, ow. - Although it's very
sympathetic, I really would not counsel Plankton to
represent himself here, he would do much better
to have an actual lawyer to represent him instead of
doing everything on his own. That doesn't tend to end well for people. - I wasn't always the
tortured shell of a protozoa that writhes in pain before you today. I (groans) was a vibrant, carefree, happy-go-lucky single cell. (dramatic music) - Pull yourself together, boy. - Then came the fateful day
that I paid an innocent visit to the death trap known
as the Krusty Krab. - Not a bad opening statement so far, I kinda like it, very persuasive, and definitely hits on
some good emotional beats. - Upon entering said establishment, I found myself without any warning slipping and finally falling onto a hard, unforgiving floor that
had been intentionally covered with a viscous fluid. - You know, he's a little
bit over the top here in this opening statement. It doesn't actually matter
if Krabs intentionally put the water there or not, certainly if he did
intentionally put the water and tried to hurt some people, then that would be far
more than actual negligence and that would border
on an intentional tort, but just the fact that he was careless and did not do what a normal
restaurant owner would do would be enough to be guilty, in this case liable for negligence. - Where was I? Oh yeah, but the worst part is my dreams of completing a
marathon like I promised my old Grammy have been dashed. (cries) I'm sorry, Gram Gram, I'm sorry. (crying) Thank you for your kind attention. Suckers. - Does the defense (sniffles)
have an opening statement? - Yes, your Honor. Poor Gram Gram! - I probably don't need to tell you that that is a terrible opening statement and they would have done better to reserve their opening statement and give it at the start of their case in chief after the plaintiff has already gone. Yeah, so far SpongeBob
not doing a good job. And by the way, it shows how important preparation is before the trial itself. They've done no discovery whatsoever, they just went straight into trial, they haven't been able
to open the briefcase that contains their entire defense. - Mr. Krabs, can you identify this item? - [Krabs] It's a wet floor sign. - Do you own one? - Uh, well, um, no, I don't. (dramatic music)
(jury gasps) - I gotta hand it to Plankton, that's a great question to
ask on cross examination. Assuming that Plankton knows that Krabs does not in fact
own one of these signs, that is probative to the case at hand, it helps demonstrate his negligence by the fact that he doesn't own the sign, he couldn't put it out and the sign potentially
would have prevented his injury in this particular case. Good cross examination,
well done. (laughs) - No, no, you don't understand. I had to make some
tough business decisions and the sign seemed superfluous. - Yeah, I don't think that matters. (jury murmurs) - No more questions. - [Judge] Your witness, Mr. Lawyerpants. - Yeah I don't know if
Plankton should have stopped the cross examination there. He could have gotten
some other good points, but I also don't think Krabs's defense that he doesn't have
the money for the sign would hold any water. (laughing) Here, if you're not financially able to have a sign that is sort of necessary for all restaurants and stores to have, odds are you probably
shouldn't be in business, so I don't think that's a good defense, the fact that he did not own and did not put out this wet floor sign. - May it please the court,
ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my client has been called cheap, miserly, and chronically tight-fisted. - Uh. - This is not relevant and not helpful. - As cheap as the
prosecution claims he is, would he be able to sit there quietly while I took out a dollar and
dropped it in the blender? (gasps) (blender whirs) - No, no, no! - Oh boy. - Daddy's got you, daddy's
got you, daddy's here. - Yeah so in addition to showing that SpongeBob did no preparation in terms of preparing his witness and defendant for actually taking the stand here, he's also asking questions
that are in no way relevant to the case at hand. Whether or not Krabs is cheap in general does nothing to address the fact of whether he committed a negligent
act in the first place, except to the extent that
Plankton has already done to show that Krabs didn't own a sign and therefore he couldn't put it out, which definitely does go to negligence, so SpongeBob not doing a great job here. He's arguing against his own client. - Does the defense have
any witness to call? - Yes, your Honor, defense
calls Squidward to the stand. - Ah, Squidward, a loyal employee. - Mr. Squidward, is it, my
client has been called cheap. Would you agree with
that ludicrous statement? - Yes. - You know, again, this has no relevance, and the last thing you want
to do is try to show character here when it's not relevant
to the case at hand. - Can you tell the court of some instance of Mr. Krabs's generosity in any way? - Nope, can I go now? - Generosity not relevant. - So it was you who made the
floor slippery, wasn't it? Answer the question! Need I remind you that
you, sir, are under oath? - I don't know how you
put a mop under oath, but yeah, he would be under oath. - It's, it's just his lunch. Or is it? (twinkling) - Defense calls Plankton to the stand. (dramatic music) Why did you go into the
Krusty Krab that day? - Ah, that's a really good question. That would definitely help his case if Plankton actually
answers truthfully here. - To you know, say hello to my once good friend Mr. Krabs, what? - Are you sure it wasn't to
make off with one of these? - Aha, getting to the heart of the matter. - Gotcha. Weren't you there to steal the formula of the most delicious,
sweet-smelling sandwich known to Bikini Bottom? Krabby Patty. (groaning nervously) - I can't take it! Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme. Yippee! (laughing) - Well, he didn't really
answer the question, but he did show that he was
faking all of his injuries, which probably is not going to be good for his particular case. But interestingly, as we established, putting aside the fact
that Plankton totally faked all of his injuries,
depends on the jurisdiction. If they were in California,
I think arguably Krabs was probably in the wrong. If we're in most states, however, Plankton was in the wrong
because he was a trespasser and not an invitee. - Has the jury reached a verdict? - We have, your Honor. We find the defendant not guilty. - Uh. - But he is cheap. - So this is a civil case. Civil cases don't decide
guilt or innocence, civil cases decide
damages want who's liable and who's not liable, so uh, (laughs) the jury would not decide
that Krabs was not guilty, they would decide that he was
not liable, owed no damages. - I made you a present. - A present for me? - Close your eyes and hold out your hand. (groans) It's a wet floor sign, I made it myself. - Well, it'll do. - It's better than nothing, I guess. (playful music) Okay so now it's time to give this episode of SpongeBob Squarepants
a grade for legal realism. (gavel bangs) On the one hand, you
have a really interesting fact pattern that is clearly based on real-life cases and deals with real issues like the standard of care
that is owed to people that are on your property,
whether someone is an invitee versus a trespasser. On the other hand, you have
some unauthorized practice of law, you have an
abbreviated time period, and you have some ridiculous
inter-species fighting and fraud on the courts. But all in all, I'm pleasantly surprised at how much realism they
were able to squeeze in to 10 minutes, so I'm
gonna give this episode of SpongeBob Squarepants a C+, specifically a pineapple under the sea. - I am now going to assault your mind with subliminal messages. - Now this is not the first time that TierZoo and I have teamed up. In fact, we actually
helped build a platform for creators so they
don't have to worry about things like demonetization. It's called Nebula, and we're partnering with CuriosityStream. As you may know, some friends
and I recently launched our own streaming service called Nebula, featuring lots of YouTube's
top educational-ish creators, including Polyphonic, Knowing Better, Wendover, Lindsay Ellis,
12tone, and of course TierZoo. We get the freedom to create
and we never have to worry about the dreaded algorithm. TierZoo and I are
actually competing to see who can get more sign-ups. Please don't make me look
bad in front of TierZoo. (imitating punching) (knuckles popping) But seriously, we put a
lot of work into this. We are really proud of the result. It's a place where creators can do what they do best, create. It's a place where we can
both house content ad free and also experiment with
new, original series that probably wouldn't
have worked on YouTube, including an exclusive
series called Working Titles, where every episode a
different creator breaks down their favorite TV intro sequence. Polyphonic did Game of Thrones, Patrick Willems did X-Men, and I'll be covering
Law & Order very soon. (gavel bangs) So what does this have to
do with CuriosityStream? Well, they love educational
content and educational creators, so they are the
perfect partner for Nebula. We recently just worked out a deal where if you sign up for CuriosityStream using the link in the description, not only will you get
a one-month free trial for CuriosityStream, but you'll also get a Nebula subscription for free, and to be clear, that Nebula subscription is not a trial, it's free for as long as you are a CuriosityStream member, which means that for less
than 20 bucks a year, not only do you get unlimited access to CuriosityStream's massive library of gorgeous, high-budget documentaries, you'll also get to enjoy
the private playground for YouTube's best educators
for no additional charge, and you'll be supporting the
creators like me directly. It's a win/win, win/win, win. So if you click on the
link in the description, not only will you be able
to access CuriosityStream's amazing documentaries like Bright Now, which is a fantastic deep
dive into timely stories about global issues, but
you'll also get a subscription to Nebula, the platform made
by creators for creators. So click on the link and check it out, I promise you won't be disappointed. So do you agree with my grade? Leave your objections in the comments and check out my other
legal reactions over here, where I will see you in court.
