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Memo From: Pam
Philp, Florida Justice Reform Institute
Date: April 8,
2005
Dear Friends,
The battle for civil
justice reform marched onward this Wednesday as the House
Governmental Operations Committee passed Representative Don
Brown’s broad-based legal reform bill, HB 1513 by a
vote of 5-2.
In addition to HB
1513, three other civil justice reforms made advances as
well: HB 1019CS which reforms asbestos laws, passed the
House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 9-1; HB 1601 which
reforms attorneys’ fees regarding vehicle no-fault insurance
passed the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 8-2; and HB
551CS which relates to vehicles and financial responsibility
passed the House Insurance Committee unanimously.
The largest battle
raged in the House Governmental Operations Committee, where the
Trial Lawyers continued to line up against common sense reforms
that would help lift the burden of an unfair, unpredictable
legal system off the backs of consumers and taxpayers.
In an effort to
thwart responsible reforms in the name of profit, the Trial
Lawyers continued to refuse to take responsibility for the
lawsuit abuse that has resulted in Florida being ranked 42nd in
the nation in legal reform and South Florida being ranked among
the top 10 “Judicial Hellholes” by the American Tort Reform
Association. This kind of senseless debate has no place in the
Florida Legislature and merely perpetuates the reputation of
Trial Lawyers as greedy opportunists.
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Don Brown |
Much of the Trial
Lawyer testimony on Wednesday was from a band of personal injury
attorneys who traveled to our
State Capitol from the Judicial Hellhole of South Florida. One
of the most outrageous claims they
made was implying that proposed civil justice reforms are
somehow going to unleash a wave of Enron-like corporate scandals
while giving giant corporations total immunity from any
wrongdoing.
Not only is there
absolutely no connection between legal reform and the corporate
scandals of the past few years, but NO proposals by the Florida
Justice Reform Institute or Rep. Don Brown will give any
wrongdoer blanket immunity from litigation.
The legislation
currently under consideration contains four basic principles:
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Hold businesses
and individuals liable for THEIR SHARE of fault.
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Return common
sense and predictability to our legal system.
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Ensure that true
victims have easier access to courts and receive fair
compensation.
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Recognize that
Florida must remain competitive with our neighboring states,
such as Georgia, South Carolina and Mississippi, which have
recently passed broad legal reforms that will give their
states an edge in competing for economic growth.
The Florida Justice
Reform Institute commends the Governmental Operations Committee
for its support of meaningful legal reforms that will restore
fairness to the civil justice system and thanks you for your
continued support to achieve meaningful reforms in our state. |
