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Lansing, MI.
August 2, 2005 —
Dan Pero, President
of the American Justice Partnership (AJP) today welcomed the
American Association of Managing General Agents (AAMGA) as a
National Partner of the AJP, a coalition of state and national
groups dedicated to winning legal reform in the states.
“The AAMGA is a powerful ally in the
legal reform battle and we are excited it has become an AJP
Partner,” said Pero.
“The AAMGA and Bernie
Heinze are recognized leaders in national and state legal reform
efforts and, with both U.S. and international members, the AAMGA
brings a unique perspective to the AJP’s efforts to restore
predictability and fairness to our civil justice system,” said
Steve Hantler, AJP Chairman and Assistant General Counsel of
Chrysler LLC. “The AAMGA’s partnership with the
AJP brings us another step closer to stopping lawsuit abuse in
our courts.”
The AAMGA is
an international trade association comprised of the premier
wholesale property and casualty companies and agents in the
insurance industry. Among its goals is to educate members,
customers, judges, legislatures and regulators on the insurance
industry’s role in our society and economy; in essence,
continually evaluating and balancing the risks and exposures of
members, with the need to fairly compensate individuals for
their losses. The AAMGA’s membership totals approximately 500
broker companies who collectively write insurance policies
annually totaling $16.4 billion in premiums.
“The judicial system
must be based on fairness and equity,” said Bernd G. Heinze,
Esquire, Executive Director of the American Association of
Managing General Agents. “The insurance industry is on the front
lines of this ongoing battle, and our partnership with the AJP
will allow us to expand our knowledge about the areas where
change is appropriate, the impact proposed legislation and new
laws will have on the marketplace, and legislative events
happening at the state as well as the national levels, so that
we and our international members can strengthen our voice in the
debate.”
The AJP approach to
legal reform is to work closely with its state and national
partners, consistent with their missions and bylaws, to:
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Develop public support for pro-reform
candidates for governor, the state legislature, Supreme
Court, and attorney general;
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Enact pro-reform state legislation and adopt
court rules that curb frivolous lawsuits; and,
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Enhance public understanding about the
importance of legal reform and the need to become more
politically involved.
A united partnership
approach with state chambers and manufacturing organizations,
business groups and state legislatures has led to several key
pieces of legislation recently passing at the state level.
Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi and Ohio have seen
significant bills passed in an effort to reign in the trial bar
and create a more level playing field. These states have
mounted strong, aggressive and fair campaigns that have resulted
in successes for some such as eliminating joint and several
liability, limiting liability for non-economic damages in
medical malpractice cases, strengthening expert witness rules,
reforming venues and allowing healthcare providers to offer an
apology to a patient without fear of it being used against them
in court, among other things.
“The legal system
costs the U.S. $246 billion per year,” Pero continued. “One by
one, the states are beginning to pass legislation to end the
perverse incentives the current system offers to the trial
lawyers, and reverse America’s lawsuit happy culture.”
õ õ õ
The American Justice Partnership, an affiliate of the National
Association of Manufacturers, is a coalition of state and
national legal reform organizations dedicated to winning legal
reform in the states. The AJP maintains dual headquarters in
Lansing, MI and Washington, D.C.
For more information, visit AJP’s
website at
www.americanjusticepartnership.org.
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