Tallahassee, FL - On Thursday, March 30, a full repeal of joint and several liability was approved by the Florida Senate by a 27 to 13 vote.  The bill, H.B. 145, will now be sent to Gov. Jeb Bush to be signed into law. The bill repeals joint and several liability and provides for each co-defendant to pay his or her proportionate share of the plaintiff's harm. 

Several groups worked in support of the bill's passage, including the Florida Justice Reform Institute, Florida Chamber of Commerce and Associated Industries of Florida (in conjunction with the Florida Coalition for Legal Reform).

FJRI President William Large

“Justice won the day. Today’s vote means that basic fairness will be restored to Florida law. That’s good news for Florida businesses and for Florida families because it will help our economy grow,” said Florida Justice Reform Institute (FJRI) President William Large. “I would like to personally thank President Tom Lee, Speaker Allan Bense, Sen. Dan Webster, and Rep. Don Brown for their commitment to fairness in our courts. Their hard work and tireless advocacy on this issue helped convince the Legislature of the importance of this reform in protecting those who expect justice from our courts.”

AIF President Barney Bishop

Associated Industries of Florida (AIF) President Barney Bishop commented, "All Floridians will benefit from the abolishment of joint and several liability lawsuits which created a “deep pocket” mentality that disproportionately attacks those with the most to lose. Under the current system, any business can be forced to pay 100 percent of the damages even after a judge or jury adjudicates them as only 20 percent at fault. For far too many years, joint and several lawsuits have harmed business owners, as well as employees, their families, you, me — all of us — who have been forced to pay higher prices for goods because of the ever-increasing litigation costs businesses must pass along to consumers."

Governor Jeb Bush is expected to sign the bill into law in the next few weeks.