The benefit is that it lowers barriers to entry to the legal system.

That's not a benefit. "Entering the legal system" is just as often someone suing you (including BS reasons like in the OP) as it is suing someone else, and if you can't "enter the legal system" because you know you'll lose and have to pay for it, that's a good thing.

because lawyers make more money that way.

This. This and this alone.