Politics and Medicine - MERCURY NEWS: Tort trials fall by nearly 80 percent

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MERCURY NEWS: Tort trials fall by nearly 80 percent

Ilena Rose

2005-08-17, 10:56 pm

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/merc...cs/12407528.htm
Tort trials fall by nearly 80 percent

EXCERPT: The implications of this new study "are ominous - victims of
corporate misconduct or negligence may have great difficulty obtaining
redress in the federal courts," said Nan Aron, president of the
Alliance for Justice, which opposed the class-action legislation Bush
signed.

PETE YOST

Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The number of tort trials in federal courts has fallen by
nearly 80 percent in less than two decades, a government study found
Wednesday, a trend the Bush administration would like to see
duplicated at the state and local levels.

Legal experts attribute the drop to Supreme Court rulings in the 1990s
that made it much more difficult for people bringing lawsuits in
federal courts to prevail.

"Plaintiffs have been avoiding federal courts," said Aaron Twerski,
dean of the Hofstra university school of law.

Nine out of 10 tort trials in federal courts involve personal injuries
such as product liability, car accidents and medical malpractice
cases, and the estimated median award by people who won their lawsuits
was $201,000 in 2003, the latest year for which figures are available,
the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics reported.

President Bush signed legislation in February to have federal judges
take most large class-action lawsuits away from state courts. In a
nine-minute White House signing ceremony, Bush said a half-dozen times
that the legislation was only a beginning in his drive to end "the
lawsuit culture."

The implications of this new study "are ominous - victims of corporate
misconduct or negligence may have great difficulty obtaining redress
in the federal courts," said Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for
Justice, which opposed the class-action legislation Bush signed.

The number of tort trials concluded in the federal court system in
1985 was 3,600, compared with fewer than 800 in 2003, the government
study said.

The total number of tort cases concluded in federal courts - those
that went to trial and those that didn't - hit a high of 60,941 in
1999, with an influx of asbestos and breast implant litigation. The
figure declined to 49,166 in 2003.

The highest estimated median damage awards in 2003: $600,000 for
medical malpractice, and $350,000 for product liability cases.

Plaintiffs won nearly 50 percent of the tort trials in federal courts
in 2003, but the winning rate was lower for those filing medical
malpractice suits, 37 percent; and product liability suits, 34
percent.

A major reason for the decline in trials: Rulings like the 1993
Supreme Court case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals which set
a very high standard for admitting expert testimony in federal courts,
said Twerski.

Testimony from expert witnesses is often the vital link in convincing
juries that an anti-nausea drug causes birth defects, that PCBs in
industrial brake fluid accelerated a worker's lung cancer or that a
defective tire was the reason for a blowout on a minivan that killed
several people.

Elaborate pretrial hearings over proposed expert witnesses are driving
up the costs of tort cases, said Brooklyn law school professor
Margaret E. Berger.

Twerski also said a string of fairly conservative judicial
appointments during the administrations of Ronald Reagan and both
Bushes "does not look kindly to this cutting-edge-type litigation."

Bush took his campaign for lawsuit reform local early this year,
visiting Madison County, Ill., which the American Tort Reform
Association dubbed the nation's top "judicial hellhole." The county
has a reputation for handing out big awards and allowing lawsuits that
would be thrown out in other districts.

More than 1,400 asbestos cases were filed in Madison County over the
last two years, and it was home to 179 class action lawsuits during
that time.

A Madison County judge ordered cigarette maker Philip Morris USA to
pay $10.1 billion for falsely marketing light cigarettes as less
harmful than other brands.

~~~~~~~~~~~

www.BreastImplantAwareness.org

Coleah

2005-08-18, 11:54 am

Such a shame, really.
I would hope the Bush administration would do something to assist those who
wish to bring suit in outting those hiding from process service. Oh, but
wait....they do already assist.....you are talking about federal 'class
action' suits where the corporations officers are not hiding in jungles
rather than face the consequences of their actions. Opps - my mistake.

"Ilena Rose" <ilena.rose@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:l8t7g15g8kjid4k9ieir3di8m49rli93si@4ax.com...
> http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/merc...cs/12407528.htm
> Tort trials fall by nearly 80 percent
>
> EXCERPT: The implications of this new study "are ominous - victims of
> corporate misconduct or negligence may have great difficulty obtaining
> redress in the federal courts," said Nan Aron, president of the
> Alliance for Justice, which opposed the class-action legislation Bush
> signed.
>
>
> PETE YOST
>
> Associated Press
>
>
> WASHINGTON - The number of tort trials in federal courts has fallen by
> nearly 80 percent in less than two decades, a government study found
> Wednesday, a trend the Bush administration would like to see
> duplicated at the state and local levels.
>
> Legal experts attribute the drop to Supreme Court rulings in the 1990s
> that made it much more difficult for people bringing lawsuits in
> federal courts to prevail.
>
> "Plaintiffs have been avoiding federal courts," said Aaron Twerski,
> dean of the Hofstra university school of law.
>
> Nine out of 10 tort trials in federal courts involve personal injuries
> such as product liability, car accidents and medical malpractice
> cases, and the estimated median award by people who won their lawsuits
> was $201,000 in 2003, the latest year for which figures are available,
> the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics reported.
>
> President Bush signed legislation in February to have federal judges
> take most large class-action lawsuits away from state courts. In a
> nine-minute White House signing ceremony, Bush said a half-dozen times
> that the legislation was only a beginning in his drive to end "the
> lawsuit culture."
>
> The implications of this new study "are ominous - victims of corporate
> misconduct or negligence may have great difficulty obtaining redress
> in the federal courts," said Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for
> Justice, which opposed the class-action legislation Bush signed.
>
> The number of tort trials concluded in the federal court system in
> 1985 was 3,600, compared with fewer than 800 in 2003, the government
> study said.
>
> The total number of tort cases concluded in federal courts - those
> that went to trial and those that didn't - hit a high of 60,941 in
> 1999, with an influx of asbestos and breast implant litigation. The
> figure declined to 49,166 in 2003.
>
> The highest estimated median damage awards in 2003: $600,000 for
> medical malpractice, and $350,000 for product liability cases.
>
> Plaintiffs won nearly 50 percent of the tort trials in federal courts
> in 2003, but the winning rate was lower for those filing medical
> malpractice suits, 37 percent; and product liability suits, 34
> percent.
>
> A major reason for the decline in trials: Rulings like the 1993
> Supreme Court case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals which set
> a very high standard for admitting expert testimony in federal courts,
> said Twerski.
>
> Testimony from expert witnesses is often the vital link in convincing
> juries that an anti-nausea drug causes birth defects, that PCBs in
> industrial brake fluid accelerated a worker's lung cancer or that a
> defective tire was the reason for a blowout on a minivan that killed
> several people.
>
> Elaborate pretrial hearings over proposed expert witnesses are driving
> up the costs of tort cases, said Brooklyn law school professor
> Margaret E. Berger.
>
> Twerski also said a string of fairly conservative judicial
> appointments during the administrations of Ronald Reagan and both
> Bushes "does not look kindly to this cutting-edge-type litigation."
>
> Bush took his campaign for lawsuit reform local early this year,
> visiting Madison County, Ill., which the American Tort Reform
> Association dubbed the nation's top "judicial hellhole." The county
> has a reputation for handing out big awards and allowing lawsuits that
> would be thrown out in other districts.
>
> More than 1,400 asbestos cases were filed in Madison County over the
> last two years, and it was home to 179 class action lawsuits during
> that time.
>
> A Madison County judge ordered cigarette maker Philip Morris USA to
> pay $10.1 billion for falsely marketing light cigarettes as less
> harmful than other brands.
>
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~
>
> www.BreastImplantAwareness.org

NotMe

2005-08-18, 5:56 pm

"Coleah" <coleah@pacifier.com> wrote in message
news:11g9ae548vom872@corp.supernews.com...
| Such a shame, really.
| I would hope the Bush administration would do something to assist those
who
| wish to bring suit in outting those hiding from process service. Oh, but
| wait....they do already assist.....you are talking about federal 'class
| action' suits where the corporations officers are not hiding in jungles
| rather than face the consequences of their actions. Opps - my mistake.

Are we talking about the likes of Ken Lay (ENRON) who was on TV not too long
back bemoneing that he *only* had $20M or so left to this name? Not counting
his multimillion dollar digs in Texas.

Coleah

2005-08-18, 5:56 pm

"NotMe" <me@privacy.net> wrote in message news:px5Ne.5$cO6.4@fe04.lga...
>
> "Coleah" <coleah@pacifier.com> wrote in message
> news:11g9ae548vom872@corp.supernews.com...
> | Such a shame, really.
> | I would hope the Bush administration would do something to assist those
> who
> | wish to bring suit in outting those hiding from process service. Oh,
> but
> | wait....they do already assist.....you are talking about federal 'class
> | action' suits where the corporations officers are not hiding in jungles
> | rather than face the consequences of their actions. Opps - my mistake.
>
> Are we talking about the likes of Ken Lay (ENRON) who was on TV not too
> long
> back bemoneing that he *only* had $20M or so left to this name? Not
> counting
> his multimillion dollar digs in Texas.
>
>

I'm talking about a deadbeat 'terrorizing activist' corporation activist
hiding from process service. Tsk, tsk.