PR blogger Peter West writes about the power (and cost-effectiveness) of the apology:
This right out of The Globe and Mail: Seems hospitals in the University of Michigan Health System have seen their annual attorney fees drop from $3-million (U.S.) to $1-million and the number of lawsuits drop by half since doctors in the system were encouraged to apologize for mistakes made. Where most professionals and company executives are ordered not to talk by their lawyers when faced with possible legal action, such council only serves to make bad situations worse.
When I’m frustrated with a company, often all I’m looking for is an apology. Yet, I rarely receive it. The same model applies to public relations. As Peter goes on to (more or less) say, the worst public statement you can make is “no comment”. It implies guilt, secrecy and that you’ve got something to hide.
DarrenBarefoot.com 
I agree. I wrote a letter to St. Paul’s earlier this year, complaining about the filthy state of certain parts of the ER. After a month, a senior manager wrote back to me and said that they’d taken a look and agreed that it was “digusting” and “disturbing”. Then they told me what they were doing to rectify the situation and the names of all managers involved. Instead of denying or downplaying the situation, they took full responsibility and restored my confidence in St. Paul’s.
I agree. Interesting that the act of admitting a mistake would decrease the number of lawsuits. Lawsuits are meant to punish those who make mistakes. We see the same thing in politics all the time. Elected officials seem to be unable to admit mistakes – probably out of fear that they will be punished at the polls. A little less denial and more mea culpa might help some politicians.
Speaking of politicians, I think one of the reasons Mike Harcourt got so much sympathy during his injury adventure last year is that he actually took the fall for Bingogate when he wasn’t directly responsible. He took responsibility for what his party had done, even though he wasn’t involved. I wish more politicians would be like that. I wish Gordon Campbell was like that.