> What Jordan describes is the assignment of responsibility
> (i.e. rules who is responsible for certain types of losses)
> not penalty.
No, what you're describing is Contract Law. And it's just *usually* the case that contracts which have other-than-expected-outcomes are between corporations and individuals. Consumer Protection plays a big part in this, for sure, but I think all you're pointing out is that if I ask the neighbor's kid next door to mow my lawn in exchange for $5, there are three likely outcomes:
1) He does it and I'm satisfied (99.999%) 2) He doesn't do it; I don't pay him, but I curse his name 3) (rarely) he doesn't do it, but I paid in advance and decide that $5 is worth going to war over
In the normal case you're talking about, agreement was made to pay the cable bill by the 15th of the month, with a penalty associated for not doing so, and, surprise, cable bill went unpaid.
These are not penal actions: these are merely breeches of contract.
I can forget/forgive my next-door neighbor's kid for being a delinquent; if I have no familial/personal connection to a cable company, they ding me for a late payment.
> For example, if a person is late in making a payment, he/she
> is typically subjected to a penalty (in addition to interest on the
> owed
> amount,) if a corporation is late in making payments, its cannot be
> subjected to a similar penalty by an individual.
My standard contract with my customers (who are mostly corporations) includes late fees. I have never assessed one. My understanding is that there are enough people who don't pay their cable bill on time that the cable company need not even have a business plan for delivery of pay-per-view movies, they can just be profitable based on late fees.
You're making a distinction where there is none.
For me? I like Contract Law. I liken it to indoor plumbing. Get rid of it, and I'm no longer interested in living in this world.
/jordan