Tort Reform

[KingMinotaur]

Dear Mr and Mrs. _

There are some very important political developments in the state and federal systems. These developments may affect your rights and the rights of all American citizens who seek relief through the civil justice system. The issues at stake are much too important to ignore.

Many major corporations and the insurance and medical industries are trying very hard right now to persuade Congress to pass new laws generally referred to as "Tort refrom". The term "tort" is a legal word for an injury or harm done to a person for which he or she may seek a civil remedy,i.e.,monetary damages. "Tort Reform" is the catch-phrase used by those who want to change many aspects of the civil justice system and make it much harder--if not impossible--for you and other citizens in your position tofile lawsuits and successfully obtain monetary compensation for serious injuries.

President Bush has long been a supporter of Tort Reform and is expected to sign any bill presented to him by Congress, making it the law of the land. Many states,Including Rhode Island,are considering similar measures. Among the current proposals are limits on the amount of money that can be obtained by a plaintiff such as yourself , significant changes in obtaining damages against multiple defendants,and severe limits on the time in which to file a lawsuit. Worse still , the federal laws would completely change and replace -- in one fell swoop--many state laws now in place which are favorable to you and other injured Americans.

You have probably heard about these issues on television and read about them in the newspapers. Do not be fooled by the accusations of "frivolous lawsuits" or "lawsuit abuse". The news reports only scratch the surface of what are complex legal and factual issues. The reports only mention the sensational cases and never indicate the ultimate outcome. Ad you know from your own experience,most personal injury claims do not have any merit and are not frivolous.

The corporate and insurance industry interests want the American public to believe Tort Reform is necesary in order to control insurance costs. It is not. The corporations,insurance industries and medical institutions simply are using this misinformation in an attempt to save themselves money in difficult economic times by limiting the consumers' rights. Importantly, a number of honest insurance executives have actually stated publicly that insurance rates will not fall even if lawsuit reforms are enacted. This is true because lawsuits are not the cause of the recent losses experienced by the insurance companies. Rather, insurance companies are now feeling the effects of their own poor investment choices,the faltering stock market and the economic insurance consequences of September 11,2001.

I am writing to ask for your help in this matter. Tort Reform is not necessary and will be harmful to your interests. Therefore,please contact any or all of your state and federal senators and representatives and tell them of your opposition to Tort Reform. Contact information can be easily obtained on the internet or in the phone book. A phone call,letter or e-mail will work and will only take a little of your time. The key factor is that lawmakers hear the stories of actual people in the community who will be harmed by tort reform.

I appreciate your time and attention. A number of consumer rights organizations,such as the Rhode Island Trial Lawyers Association, have been fighting hard against Tort reform. Eith the active involvement of people like you,we can defeat these new efforts to take away your legal rights.

[MilkToast]

hmmm.... no more filling what used to be called "ambulance chasing" lawsuits... where do I sign up?

[LixyChick]

I'm not totally for tort reform.....and I'm not totally against a remedy for those stupid, frivolous lawsuits!

I've never really blamed the lawyers for "trying to scam" a large company through the legal system. Those large companies have lawyers too! And so be it as to the best lawyer wins. (Is that an oxymoron?) I totally blame the judges who even temporarily entertain the "oh so obvious scams" and lunacy of the audacity of some of these lawyers and what they bring to a system meant for "true" cases of hardship.........and not personal stupidity!

Oh geezzzzzz! I hope that made sense....cause it did when I thought it!

Tort reform.......I agree.......would punish the true cases as well as the frivolous cases. But the system works in reverse too.

Quick story......I had a friend who bashed into the back of a Ford Pinto while it was stopped at a stop sign. YES it was HIS fault for not stopping in time. Yes it was an accident. Slippery road on black ice. And NO, no drugs or alcohol were involved. Accidents happen......but when they happen to the ass end of a Pinto........the Pinto blows up. Why? Ford Motor Company......in all it's wisdom.......put the gas tank in the ass end of the Pinto. Nothing of the car body to protect it....just out there asking to be blown to smitherines. They don't do this with any of the cars since the Pinto........Hmmmmm? Wonder why? Anyway......so much for the short story.....LOL!....anyway.........my friend was burned beyond recognition but lived. He looked like the lead in the Phantom of the Opera.....no....probably 1000 times worse! The fire burnt his lips away.....and his front teeth too. He had no more ear lobes and his eyebrows and lashes were gone. Somehow his eyelids remained but were burnt so bad he could never close his eyes all the way when he slept and he had to wear sunglasses even in the house because the lights would constantly make his eyes water. His left hand was burned away to a nub to his wrist. His chest was a mass of scars. He could never get an erection again but somehow his penis remained and he could urinate from it. It too was burned very badly though. His legs weren't burnt as badly but all the way to his toes you could find some mark of the fire. I know because he became a major alcoholic a couple of years after this incident (and after the failed lawsuit) and stripped totally naked once at a party. He tried to sue Ford for damages........and ya know what their lawyers said? It was your fault Mickey.....for hitting the ass end of that Pinto! His lawsuit wasn't for his stupidity and he was fined greatly from the state of N.J. for careless driving already. He lost his license and demolished his own car and could never work again......but he was BURNED BEYOND RECOGNITION.....not because HE was careless........but because FORD WAS! If he had hit any other car he would have at least had a chance to obtain his skin and limbs and body parts. But their lawyers had more time and money to beat this man further into the ground than he would ever have the time and money to fight back with. And Mickey NEVER recieved a penny for his permenant disability (except from the state as is the case of permanent disability in the the state of N.J) and he lived for 5 more years after the failed attempt at collecting what I feel was RIGHTFULLY his! Ironically.....as I stated a moment ago.....he became an alcoholic and while drunk on his mothers sofa (as he was reduced to moving back home with mom) he fell asleep with a cigarette in his hand and burned his mother and himself and their house to the ground!

OK.....so my point? How can this incident above go by the wayside when........in an incident.....Yes a highly publicized and more recent case, but pertaining to a major corporation...........like the case of the woman that spilled hot coffee on herself after (stupidly) putting it between her legs and driving away from the drive-thru of McDonalds.........entitle HER to mounds of money? It was HER fault that SHE put hot coffee between her legs! OK....it was McDonald's fault that the coffee was hot......but come on, duh! personified! Now I feel like an ass everytime I get a coffee from McDonalds and see that warning on the cup. Who would expect cold coffee from McDonalds? And if she got cold coffee that day...would she have sued and won for that?

*EDIT FEATURE* Calm down Aqua! I saw you on line and I know your feelings from previous discussed McDonalds lawsuit......just needed a well publicized issue hun! LOL!

Maybe I got off the track here a bit Minotaur hun! But I do have a point about frivolous lawsuits! They have got to stop being entertained in a court system meant for the truly injured!

So...........how do I vote halfway? I don't want a cap on legitimate claims. Mickey might still be alive if he were able to follow through and Ford was found guilty of negligence. Many people have legitimate cases! I agree......but what's the answer to my round-about question? I can't stand another story of an asshole receiving millions for something you and I KNOW is beyond personal stupidity!

OK....who wants the pretty pink soap box now?

*steps down*

[Scarecrow]

"Applaudes" Lixy

[LixyChick]

*takes a bow and blushes*

TY Scarecrow.......I know I babble.....but damn........it's all for a good point in the end!

[Tess]

Sorry, KM... the lunacy has got to stop. A lady recently won a $1.5 million judgement from a furniture store because she tripped and fell... over her own child. Ridiculous!!

Without a cap, the amounts will continue to spiral. I am for compensation for those people who have truly been wronged through negligence or criminal acts. That is what our legal system is for.

But with the number of lawyers out there needing to make a living, too many cases are contrived and frivilous. And who ends up paying for all this? The populace at large, through higher costs for everything because of the built-in cost of litigation in all the goods and services the consumer purchases.

Tort Reform... Yes!

[LixyChick]

Originally posted by H@rd Rock
A lady recently won a $1.5 million judgement from a furniture store because she tripped and fell... over her own child. Ridiculous!!

I read that report H@rd Rock! I think it was in a "Stella Award" email sent to me. A "Stella Award" is in honor of the ludicrous lawsuit of that very woman who sued McDonald's!

I thought the "award of stupidity" should to go to the guy who sued when his hand was run over by the owner of the car which he was trying to steal the hubs from. Um...........well.......nuff said!

[dicksbro]

Lixy, your real point was that we assume (???) that judges have some, at least limited, intelligence and should be able to use that to pitch stupid lawsuits out while letting legitimate cases like that of your friend proceed. I agree with you.

Big problem, I suspect, is that so many judges are elected and I don't think intelligence is a requirement to get on the ballot.

Just to add my own thoughts ... maybe medical and other direct costs could be free of limits with those monies limited to paying those direct costs .. while punititive or other awards be limited to some fixed amount (and, no, darn-it, I don't know exactly where that limit ought to be).

Does that make sense? I'm like you in that it did when I thought it. ;)

[LixyChick]

I think I got it db! But I have to disagree as to a limit on how much SHOULD have been awarded to my friend......or anyone else with a legitimate case of injury due to negligence on the part of someone other than themselves and their own stupidity!

I think it should be a case by case award! Not a standard across the board. So that the specifics can be sorted on an individual basis and the ultimate responsibility for a judge would be to dismiss all the nonsensical (stupidity) cases. Then a jury (and I'm not opposed to a professional jury system) could hear the cases while the injured (victim...if you will) gets an opportunity to face the party they are accusing so they could see the actual victim and the result of their negligence, as opposed to cases being settled out of court or beaten down by corporate lawyers before they even get a chance to be heard.

I just want a more just system for people who have legitimate injuries.........and for our system to allow a judge to "judge" what seems legitimate and what seems ludicrous!

Come on..........some of these cases I've read about are from bizzarro world! Where do these people get the brass balls to even try and sue for some of the shit they sue for.......and why would a judge want to have to sit through the bullshit? I'd be an iron-fisted judge....I can tell I would.

Maybe we should send all these cases up before Judge Judy! She'd say, "Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining! You were stupid and now you want insurance rates to go up so you can profit from your outright stupidity! Well I'm calling a spade a spade and you are stupid for doing______ and you won't get a dime for it! Now get out of my courtroom!"

And that would be that! LMFAO!

*looking down to find myself on the box again*

Oops!

[whitehorse]

If you look at the big picture, Tort Reform is not a bad thing. What they are trying to do is set a standard for damages. The fact of the matter is they are leaving punitive damages up to the jury. In other words if you are injured during a medical procedure the most your suit will be for is $250,000. But on top of that the jury can award an unlimited amount for negligence , or punitive damages.

If we don't do something about these ridiculous lawsuits soon none of us will be able to afford medicle care or insurance either.

As a small business owner I understand the risks involved in dealing with the public, and I am all for as much reform as we can get!

[quisath]

Yeah.........what Lixy said. I'm with you darlin. :)

[KingMinotaur]

wel , I'm glad I got some attention with this .
Dickbro - I have to disagree with putting a cap ; I lost my 1st-born son due to medical negligence , and have a major suit going on .
How can anyone justify saying: "Oh.. our doctor screwed up and now you lost your loved one.. here's a paltry sum and too bad for you. Our doctor is covered by the insurance and has nothing to fear as even if it came out of his pocket directly , it wouldn't hurt him too badly."
The idea of affixing a cap totally takes the word punitive out of punitive damages. It'd be like saying , ok doc , so you goofed.. whoops.

[LixyChick]

KM! So very sorry for your loss hun! *HUGS*

Um......no response to what I tormented everyone with???