Still Standing? Not This Suit

The most outrageous lawsuit of the decade in California? It could be the case of the Elton John fan in the john, says one court reform group.

The fan said he felt emotional distress after women burst into the men’s restroom he was occupying during an Elton John concert. He sued the city of San Diego, as well as a beer vendor, said the Civil Justice Assn. of California, which campaigns against frivolous lawsuits.

But the L.A. Daily Journal pointed out that a judge threw out the lawsuit and made the plaintiff and his attorney pay for a frivolous filing.

Flush.

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MORE LOONEY LAWSUITS: Getting into the spirit of the occasion, we offer some other kooky (and unsuccessful) suits reported in this column the last few years:

* A woman who suffered frostbite after a recreational accident claimed her physicians had told her to hold ice on the wound 24 hours a day for 10 days.

* The father of a Little League player said he suffered mental distress after officials and coaches requested that he move about 25 feet away from the field where no one was standing if he wanted to smoke.

* A passenger on a boat who injured himself while jumping on the dock said he was aware that it was a risky maneuver. But, he added, he had been ordered to jump by the skipper. And he wasn’t the mutinous type.

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NAME THAT FIT THE JOB: Howard Brief is a lawyer in Seal Beach.

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LETTER IMPERFECT: Malvin Wald came across a sign with a typo that gave it a Christmas theme (see photo).

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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LATIMES Ext. 77083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, Times Mirror Square, L.A. 90053 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.