Meaning of "mercenary ambulance chasers"

[Cooliegirly]

“Far from being mercenary ambulance chasers, trial lawyers perform a public service by forcing coporations to consider the potential financial cost of pollution, unsafe products, and mistreatment of workers.”

[Conchita]

Is that your perfect summer read, Cooliegirly ?!

The adjective ‘mercenary’ refers to people interested in money. Someone can have mercenary instincts, for example.

Here’s what Wikipedia says about the term ‘ambulance chaser’, which is a new one on me (good that you brought it up!):

The term ‘ambulance chaser’ is a derisive term for an unethical attorney who solicits business at the scenes of accidents or in hospitals, in exchange for a percentage of the damages that will be recovered in the case.

The orgins of this phrase dates from 1897, and stems from newspaper articles about attorneys seeking clients through targeted mail solicitation. The stories told of attorneys who would request accident reports and other public records, then mail letters to accident victims and others offering their services. “Ambulance chasing” was one of the descriptive phrases employed by the media for this activity. It later became a derogatory term for direct advertising.

[Cooliegirly]

Ha, interesting, thank you. I hate it that I don’t get to use Wikipedia over here. By the way, aside from summer reading and the essays that follow, I’m also having summer school to go to.