The Push for Meaningful Lawsuit Abuse Reform
January 24, 2011

Hi, I’m Gene Barr, vice president of the Pennsylvania Chamber. Welcome to this month’s Pennsylvania Chamber Minute.

A state’s legal system has a direct bearing on the cost and quality of health care; the cost of consumer goods and services; new product research and development; business investments and job creation.

Unfortunately, Pennsylvania’s distinction of having one of the worst legal climates in the nation threatens all of these.

That’s why the Pennsylvania Chamber is fully engaged with the General Assembly and the Corbett administration to secure enactment of commonsense legal reforms. With Governor Corbett and legislative leadership both citing this as a priority, the business community is hopeful for meaningful progress.

Pennsylvania has made some modest medical malpractice venue reforms in 2003. As a result, the number of malpractice filings in Philadelphia fell from a high of 1,365 to just 491 in 2009.

But it wasn’t enough. The number of jury verdicts and judicial rulings of more than one million dollars tripled in Philadelphia in the first half of last year compared to the same period in 2009. And, according to data collected from 1,600 hospitals between 1997 and 2007, Pennsylvania has the highest claim frequency rate in the country, nearly twice the average of most states.

This contributed to Philadelphia recently being named the nation’s No. 1 judicial hellhole.

Reforms have also not been applied to the broader civil liability system. Many employers know too well the negative implications of a legal system that lacks commonsense and predictability. Ultimately, all Pennsylvanians end up paying a price.

Ensuring that defendants in liability cases are responsible only for their fair share of damages; preventing plaintiffs’ attorneys from shopping for favorable court venues; protecting innocent sellers of products from liability; and enacting reasonable protections for manufacturers, among other improvements, will help create a legal system that is fair for employers, individuals and families.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be calling on you to help provide backing to lawmakers who stand with us on lawsuit abuse reform; and put pressure on lawmakers who are on the fence or oppose efforts to restore balance to the Commonwealth’s legal system.

Thanks in advance for your support. And thank you for spending a minute of your time with the Pennsylvania Chamber…The Statewide Voice of Business.