|
Washington,
D.C., October 19, 2005 — The
American Tort Reform
Association (ATRA) today applauded the U.S. House
of Representatives for passing H.R. 554, the Personal
Responsibility in Food Consumption Act. This legislation,
which would protect purveyors of food from civil liability for
claims of obesity or obesity-related illness, passed by a strong
bipartisan vote of 306-120.
“We commend
Representative Ric Keller (FL) for sponsoring this important
legislation,” said ATRA President Sherman Joyce. “If enacted,
this will help ensure that the food industry does not become
regulated by a single judge who could retroactively change the
rules for the food industry, which is already heavily regulated.
Only Congress, state legislatures or regulatory agencies—not
judges—should make those determinations.”
Over the past decade,
a new phenomenon has arisen in our civil justice system called
“regulation through litigation,” where the focus of traditional
tort law shifts away from its main purpose—compensating someone
who has been injured by the wrongful conduct of another—to
having an enterprising judge create brand new rules to empower a
jury to make determinations that traditionally were the
responsibility of Congress, state legislatures or regulatory
agencies.
Personal injury lawyers,
many of whom were key players behind the tobacco litigation
model, have held meetings to devise legal strategies on how to
sue the food industry for causing a nationwide obesity problem.
U.S. House of
Representatives passed HR. 339, The Personal
Responsibility in Food Consumption Act of 2004, H.R. 339, by
a vote of 276-139 in March of 2004.
|
