Here's an excerpt from an article on non-apology apologies:

The Most Common Mistake: A Non-Apology Apology
-Joshua Uebergang

"It has become a trend in public apologies to say sorry if you hurt someone. The apology is dependent on the condition someone was hurt and implies the offended has something wrong with oneself. Some more examples:

- "I'm sorry for not mowing the lawn even though it does not require cutting."

- "I apologize if I hurt anyone."

- "Please take my apology if you were offended by what I said."

To show you how easy and delicate apologizing is, check out this apology: "I'm sorry I lied to you. I feel guilty that I've let you down."

All you need to do is replace the first sentence with "I'm sorry if I lied to you" and you've destroyed your apology by making it a non-apology apology.

Do you see what kind of apology a non-apology apology is now? We use non-apology apologies to take the heat off ourselves to keep the offended person quite [sic]. It puts the onus on those we upset by implying the victim has something wrong. There is no remorse and sorry similar to what I explained with how most young children apologize. It is something you say to please the other person while protecting yourself. You try to shy away from guilt and responsibility by using a non-apology apology."

http://ezinearticles.com/?Most-Common-Mistake-People-Make-in-Apologizing---The-Non-Apology-Apology&id=570890