People can be pretty fast and free with suggesting lawsuits. Most reasonable people see the court system addressing criminal issues, but are also a means to decide serious contractual or government issues. Most reasonable people recognize lawsuits take up resources (time, energy and money), both personal and public.
With the extensive damage from all the recent rains throughout Christiansburg, more discussion about suing this or that person or government have popped up.
With some recent rezoning applications before the town's Planning Commission and Council, more discussion about suing this or that person or government have popped up, too.
Anyone with the means to hire an attorney can do so, and a lawsuit can be filed. These are often done on a fee basis, yet can also be conducted on a percentage basis (where attorney receives a negotiated amount of any final settlement).
The Christiansburg Town Manager was recently overheard saying "Get in line," when being told about this or that possible lawsuit.
This makes citizens -- voters and taxpayers -- wonder how often, and why, the town has been involved in lawsuits (directly or indirectly).
Who pays the town's attorney fees? Who pays for any court settlements? Who pays for the staff time when they are making depositions or sitting in court waiting to be called to testify?
Some past examples involving Christiansburg (directly or indirectly), have been reported on in public forums. Some details are sometimes kept secret for this or that reason. Some of these past examples can be found in reading the official council minutes, others are not seen there.
One would hope that Christiansburg government, with assistance from the town's legal firm, would endeavor to always avoid such situations -- regardless of whether certain officials are protected or awards and fines are paid by indemnifying insurance policies and relative to personnel, civil rights violations, or related to planning practices or contracts (as some recent examples).
Citizens have a right to expect that before it gets to the point anyone feels compelled to file a lawsuit, issues can be resolved proactively through dialog, negotiation or mediation. If not, expect to buy another county courthouse 25 years from now as the new one about to be constructed will again be bursting at the seams.