The business-friendly US Supreme Court has once shown that persistence pays off. Especially when it's coming from the big end of town.

The Supremes have cut the 1994 $5 billion punitive damages bill against Exxon Mobil over the exxon valdez oil spill to just $500 million. That's a drop in the ocean, the equivalent of a few days earnings for a company that generated a profit of over $40 billion

Exxon Mobil has shown that if you throw enough money into litigating, you can win anything. The company had filed more than 60 petitions and appeals, sought 23 time extensions and filed more than 1,000 motions, briefs, requests and demands.