You are right, if the defending party has enough money to defend, then the case will mostly be decided on the abilities/experience of the lawyers and the merits

You are right, if the defending party has enough money to defend, then the case will mostly be decided on the abilities/experience of the lawyers and the merits of each side. But what happens when the defendant just simply doesn't have the money to defend themselves in court? Have you represented a client in court for free for 2 years and paid for their court fees and discovery? You've also probably dealt mostly with relatively rational people in good faith. But when you have someone who's very vindictive or irrational, acting in bad faith and with a lot of money, it can be terrifying to be on the receiving end, and you can feel absolutely hopeless if you don't have the knowledge or money to defend.