[jimtorr]

I read somewhere that excessive litigation was one of the factors that lead to the collapse of Ancient Greece.

I don't know about Greece, but it certainly was a serious problem in Rome. The threat of constant litigation was an important reason why Julius Ceaser marched on Rome.

[EagleWings]

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship."

-- Alexander Fraser Tyler (later Lord Alexander Fraser Woodhouslee), in "The Decline and Fall of the Athenian Republic," published 1776.

[longtermmemmory]

that is a new one on me about Greece.

However I do know that the philosopher who burried a fly on his estate was not so crazy. Rome had a law that made property tax exempt if there was a family tomb on the property. So the philosopher burried his beloved pet fly. no taxes.