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Reform
Taxpayers will fund more litigation under proposed rule change in Dem budget plan, business defense lawyer says
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Tucked into the 2,100-page House Democratic budget bill is a generous gift for the plaintiffs’ bar, notes Victor Schwartz, co-chair of Shook, Hardy & Bacon’s Public Policy Practice Group.
Reform
Georgia tort reform law not entirely helpful to lone defendants
ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) – The resolution of confusion in the wording of a Georgia tort reform law means lone defendants won’t be able to argue they weren’t wholly at fault for a plaintiff’s alleged injuries.
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Tort reform groups applaud W.Va. lawmakers' work on COVID immunity legislation
CHARLESTON – National and statewide tort reform groups are praising West Virginia lawmakers for work on the COVID-19 immunity legislation that could be on the governor’s desk soon.
Reform
W.Va. House bill would limit defendants being named in asbestos lawsuits
CHARLESTON – A bill introduced in the House of Delegates would make major changes to how asbestos lawsuits are filed in West Virginia.
Reform
COVID liability immunity bill passes state Senate, heads to House of Delegates
CHARLESTON — The state Senate has passed a bill that would provide immunity from civil litigation regarding COVID-19 matters.
Reform
ATRA's Joyce touts effectiveness of 'Judicial Hellholes' program
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Many elected officials are oblivious to the restrictions on health care access and the overall damage to the economy caused by rampant abuse of the legal system, Tiger Joyce, president of the American Tort Reform Association, told the Washington Legal Foundation in a recent interview.
Reform
Plaintiffs lawyer rips colleagues over multidistrict litigation fees, pressure tactics
PHILADELPHIA (Legal Newsline) - Federal multidistrict litigation, a procedure intended to resolve mass-tort lawsuits fairly and efficiently, has mutated into an unethical moneymaking machine for lawyers that is badly in need of reform, a prominent plaintiff attorney says as he prepares to lobby for changes.
Reform
Philadelphia remains the No. 1 'Judicial Hellhole,' now joined by Pa. Supreme Court
WASHINGTON – In the latest annual report of “Judicial Hellholes” released today by the American Tort Reform Association, Pennsylvania courts have taken the No. 1 ranking for the second consecutive year – due to high-dollar mass tort verdicts, expanding medical liability litigation and a lower reliability standard for expert witness evidence, among other issues.
Reform
Congressman asks Cuomo to change N.Y. construction liability law
ALBANY, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – Defendants in New York courts have a new tool to fight certain types of lawsuit, while construction companies are again hoping legal reform comes to them.
Reform
KEFFER HIRSCHAUER: Institutions must address Title IX changes despite distractions of the pandemic
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) – The global pandemic has had educational institutions scrambling to adjust operations to protect students, faculty, and other employees.
Reform
Trial lawyers drooling over prospect of Democrats in control of Congress, White House
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A Washington controlled by Democrats would be a bonanza for the trial bar longing for changes in law and policy that would expand liability law and increase access to the courts, two national experts in tort law told Legal Newsline
Reform
Cozen O'Connor wins case alleging it violated mediation confidentiality law
MIAMI (Legal Newsline) – Plaintiffs attorneys won’t be able to move forward with a lawsuit against a law firm that defended an insurance company by disclosing what was alleged to be confidential information.
Reform
Judge to opioid lawyers: Show me you're worth 7% of multibillion-dollar settlement
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing federal multidistrict litigation against the opioid industry has given plaintiff lawyers three weeks to provide more information to justify their request to steer 7% of any global settlement toward a “common benefit fund” for lead attorneys, which could amount to more than $3 billion based on reported settlement amounts.
Reform
First-of-its-kind bill enacted in Iowa forces asbestos lawyers to pare usual list of defendants
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) – It took a couple of months longer than expected, but Iowa is now the first state to pass a law that reins in a certain practice by asbestos lawyers.
Reform
Law firms criticized for advertising services during Coronavirus pandemic
CHARLESTON – Businesses of all types are learning to adjust and adapt amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. That includes attorneys and law firms. But some people – including fellow lawyers – have called out some trial attorneys for advertising their services during the pandemic.
Reform
In criticizing opioid judge, Sixth Circuit gives defendants hope for MDL reform
CINCINNATI (Legal Newsline) - Facing a string of damaging rulings by the judge overseeing sprawling litigation against them, some of the nation’s leading retail pharmacy chains resorted to the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass
Reform
Most clients in the dark about benefits, nuances of expungement process, criminal litigator says
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) – Helping clients with criminal records appreciate the importance of expungement can be as simple as sitting them down with an attorney who understands the process, according to one prominent litigator in Indiana.
Reform
Georgia Senate committee addresses the growing infamy of the state's legal system
ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) – A Georgia Senate study committee charged with drawing up a plan to reduce the cost of doing business in Georgia has released its report with its recommendations to "safeguard and balance" the state's civil litigation system.
Reform
Democrats' rush to regulate PFAS fails, as Senate rejects Superfund measure
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – The effort of Democrats in Congress to classify certain chemicals as “hazardous” under the federal Superfund law – a move that would have had major consequences for businesses and the lawyers who sue them - was not successful.
Reform
'Fake news': Senate hasn't reached deal on PFAS, sources say, as Dems told 'enough is enough'
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – Reports of a U.S. Senate deal that would classify certain chemicals as “hazardous substances” under the federal Superfund law (and give trial lawyers more targets for lawsuits as a result) are false, say sources familiar with the issue.