Category Archives: Tort Reform

AAJ, Others Point Out Flaws in Chamber’s Lawsuit Abuse List

Written On January 12, 2012 By Bob Kraft

The Jersey Journal reported, “The US Chamber of Commerce’s Institute of Legal Reform published a list of 2011’s most ridiculous lawsuits as compiled by FacesofLawsuitAbuse.org.” The website also features “a poll in which readers were able to vote on the lawsuit they felt was most ridiculous.” However, the Jersey Journal noted, American Association for Justice spokesperson [...]

Posted in Tort Reform

Study: Insurers Often Cry Wolf to Boost Profits

Written On December 29, 2011 By Bob Kraft

To those of us who represent personal injury clients, this story is no surprise at all. It’s all a part of the phony “tort reform” movement that has swept the country in recent years. But the Raleigh News & Observer has an interesting article on the subject. Here are excerpts:
A new study produced by consumer and [...]

Posted in Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Tort Reform

Featured Link — FightingForJustice.org

Written On December 22, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Fighting for Justice is the new blog of the American Association for Justice. It is filled with consumer information about defective products and unfair laws. Here is a description from the site:
Fighting for Justice is your resource for the latest news and information about America’s civil justice system.
As the world’s largest trial bar, the American [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Featured Link, Product Liability or Medical Devices, Tort Reform, Vehicle Law or News

Hot Coffee — The Movie

Written On December 1, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Hot Coffee — I can’t recommend this movie highly enough. It’s the real story of the infamous McDonald’s hot coffee law suit, and of other matters related to the misleading phrase “tort reform.” If you have any interest at all in this subject please buy or rent the movie. You won’t be disappointed. Here is [...]

Posted in Tort Reform

Doctor Gaps in Texas Persist Despite Perry’s Stats

Written On November 14, 2011 By Bob Kraft

It’s no great surprise to many of us that the medical malpractice “tort reform” legislation of several years ago has not brought about the benefits promised by its supporters, such as the big insurance companies. One of those benefits was supposed to be more physicians in under-served areas of the state. But this simply has [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Trial Lawyers Take Issue With Depiction Of Legal Reform As Jobs Legislation

Written On November 8, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Gary M. Paul is president of the American Association for Justice, formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. He wrote this opinion piece for Roll Call.
On Wednesday, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) addressed the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its Institute for Legal Reform — the leading front group for multinational corporations seeking to limit [...]

Posted in Tort Reform

Insult to Injury: Texas Workers’ Comp System Denies, Delays Medical Help

Written On November 2, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Writer Terry Carter has an excellent article in the American Bar Association Journal regarding the decline of the Texas Workers’ Compensation system since the law was fundamentally changed in 1991. If you work in Texas, or care for someone who does, you should read this eye-opening article. You will be shocked to learn that Texas [...]

Posted in Tort Reform, Workers' Compensation

Why We Need the Civil Justice System

Written On October 18, 2011 By Bob Kraft

From the American Association for Justice:
America’s civil justice system gives people have a fair chance to receive justice through the legal system when they are injured by the negligence or misconduct of others – even when it means taking on the most powerful corporations.
This is more important now than ever because the drug and oil [...]

Posted in Tort Reform

Report: Tort Reform Made Healthcare Worse in Texas

Written On October 17, 2011 By Bob Kraft

According to the Austin American Statesman, a report, titled “A Failed Experiment,” by Public Citizen “says the 2003 Texas law that limited damage awards in malpractice suits has caused health care spending to rise and has not significantly increased the number of doctors in Texas.” While “Gov. Rick Perry has touted the benefits of the law,” the [...]

Posted in Tort Reform

Most Physicians Face Medical Liability Suits But Few Pay

Written On September 7, 2011 By Bob Kraft

In continuing coverage, American Medical News reports that although nearly all physicians “will be sued at least once during their career,” most cases “will end in their favor,” according to a study published Aug. 18 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study authors estimated that by “age 65, 75% of physicians in low-risk [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

PolitiFact Calls Governor Perry’s Tort Reform Claims False

Written On August 30, 2011 By Bob Kraft

The Hill “Healthwatch” blog reported, “The website PolitiFact.com on Friday threw some cold water on Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) claims about tort reform in his state — claims tort-reform supporters often tout as a model for other states.” While campaigning, the governor has said that “Texas gained 21,000 new doctors because of malpractice reforms [...]

Posted in Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

AAJ Disputes Governor Perry’s Malpractice Reform Claims

Written On August 18, 2011 By Bob Kraft

In a blog post on Rick Perry’s Texas record, the Washington Post (8/15, Plumer) reported, “Perry can claim credit for a 2003 law that caps malpractice awards. Perry said, ‘We’ve had the most sweeping tort reform in the nation,” adding “that Texas has added some 20,000 physicians since the law was passed.” The Post adds, [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Businesses’ Fear of U.S. Jury System is Irrational

Written On August 9, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Why does the business community seem to be so afraid of jury trials? The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has spent many millions of dollars in the past few years lobbying Congress to loosen regulations on business and to restrict the use of jury trials in disputes between consumers and businesses. The Houston Chronicle ran an [...]

Posted in Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

Should Veterans Have the Right to Sue for Negligence in Military Hospitals?

Written On July 6, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Since 1950, U.S. veterans have been unable to make claims for medical malpractice committed in military hospitals. This seemingly unfair rule was decided in a U.S. Supreme Court case referred to by the Plaintiff’s name, Feres.It is now called the Feres Doctrine.
Many lawyers who represent vets thought there was a chance this 60-year-old rule might [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform, Veterans Benefits

A Lawsuit Is Never Frivolous When It’s About Your Family

Written On July 5, 2011 By Bob Kraft

The Dallas Morning News columnist Steve Blow wrote last weekend about a local couple who have been picketing a nursing home because a relative died there. The couple is frustrated because every lawyer they’ve talked with has told them that lawsuits against nursing homes are essentially worthless in Texas since passage of “tort reform” in [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

Who Represents Me in Washington and in Austin?

Written On May 12, 2011 By Bob Kraft

We are in the midst of some very bad legislative proposals, both in Washington and in Austin. Whether you’re concerned about the loss of Medicare (Washington) or passage of a corporate immunity bill (Austin), you should contact your representatives and make your concerns known.
There is a handy site for Texas who want to know who [...]

Posted in Government, Medicaid, Medicare, Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

Tell Your Senator to Vote NO on the Corporate Immunity Bill

Written On May 10, 2011 By Bob Kraft

This is a follow-up message from Texas Watch to go along with the blog post from yesterday:
Dangerous legislation pushed by lobbyists for polluters, insurance companies and other corporate wrongdoers is on its way to the floor of the Texas Senate. The bill (HB 274) is designed to intimidate Texas families and small businesses into foregoing [...]

Posted in Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

Perry Thinks Corporate Immunity Is an Emergency… Really?

Written On May 9, 2011 By Bob Kraft

This press release is from the consumer organization Texas Watch:
Under the House Rules, an emergency item is one that is “of such pressing and imperative import as to demand immediate action.” After 20+ years of pro-defendant legal changes, Rick Perry believes that making it even more difficult for Texans with valid claims to access [...]

Posted in Political and/or Judicial, Tort Reform

How Our Cars Got Safer

Written On April 19, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Earlier this month I wrote a blog post about the fact that trial lawyers are partially responsible for the increased safety of today’s vehicles, and how those safety features have led to the 2010 death rate in auto crashes being the lowest since 1949.
Now a longer, and more eloquent opinion piece about this same matter [...]

Posted in Tort Reform, Vehicle Law or News

Wisconsin Governor Signs Bill Lowering Auto Insurance Liability Minimums

Written On April 15, 2011 By Bob Kraft

Union-busting is not the only big political issue in Wisconsin these days. According to a press release from the American Association for Justice, the state has now reduced the minimum required auto liability policy limits. That’s going to be bad news for anyone in Wisconsin who is seriously injured in a car wreck. Here is [...]

Posted in Tort Reform, Vehicle Law or News