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perspectives tort_reformWhat is tort reform?
Tort reform is a series of efforts on the legislative level, in both state and federal courts, to limit liability and put caps on awards given to victims in civil tort cases. Our section titled Strategies of Tort Reform provides details about the ways tort reform is implemented. To understand the implications of the tort reform movement, it is important to first have a basic understanding about tort law.
What are tort lawsuits?
Tort lawsuits give American people, who have been seriously harmed through no fault of their own, a chance to seek compensation for their losses and suffering. Tort lawsuits function to hold negligent or malfeasant companies and individuals responsible for their actions and curb others'' intentions to commit similar wrongs. After examining the facts of a tort lawsuit, a judge or jury will determine what they believe is fair compensation for the aggrieved victim. In many cases, tort lawsuits are resolved without going to court through a settlement or arbitration process.
What are some examples of tort cases?
First example: An 81-year old woman living in a nursing home was physically and sexually assaulted by two employees at the facility. She had to undergo surgery is now relegated to a wheelchair because of the attack and has suffered significant emotional pain. She files a tort lawsuit so that she can obtain compensation for the cost of her surgery, other costs related to her injury treatment and reparations to recognize her emotional pain and suffering.
A 40-year-old man develops liver failure, which requires a transplant and extensive medical care, because of a prescription drug he used to lower his cholesterol. The maker of the drug has known for several years that there is an increased risk of liver failure posed by their medication. In the name of profit over safety, they fail to convey this important safety information to patients. A tort lawsuit can help this man obtain assistance paying for this hospital bills and the continued care he will need for the rest of his life.
Tort reform can take away these victims'' right to obtain fair compensation for their tremendous losses and suffering.
What are the implications of tort reform?
Tort reform is an effort to take away the rights of average Americans to obtain the compensation a judge or jury may deem fair, given their substantial losses. Tort reform allows big businesses and other power players to get away with negligence, fraud, or other unscrupulous acts that harm the American people. These corporations, insurers, and their political pawns promote an aggressive campaign of propaganda, which touts the benefits of tort reform, so that companies will not have to turn over any profit to the people they injure.
Who is in favor of tort reform?
Tort reform advocates are a coalition of insurers, HMO groups, pharmaceutical companies, Chambers of Commerce, big business, right-wing ideologues, including President Bush, and other interests who want to protect companies from the liability when they cause harm to people.
Who is against tort reform?
American people who are educated about the true implications of tort reform, civil rights advocates, consumer advocate groups, plaintiffs attorneys, labor groups, state prosecutors, legal scholars, political commentators, and more. These entities include Public Citizen, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, The Committee for Justice for All, Oregon State Council of Senior Citizens, and Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD), the Center for Justice and Democracy,
Who is harmed by tort reform?
Consumers and innocent Americans are the victims of tort reform. Tort reform takes away your right to a fair case, in which an impartial judge or jury looks at the facts of your case to determine liability, if you are eligible for compensation, and what that compensation should be. We trust juries every day to determine if people are guilty of capital crimes and other serious offenses, shouldn''t we be able to count on them to determine what compensation is fair for someone whose life has been torn apart at the hands of another?
Particularly in the case of medical malpractice, doctors and other healthcare providers are used as pawns by tort reformers to further their own interests. Doctors are made to appear the victims of the tort system. However, most of the damages paid to those harmed by medical malpractice comes from the deep pockets of the insurance industry. When tort reform measures are passed and the insurance companies are shielded from paying for the mistakes of their insured, they do not pass those savings down to doctors who are charged outrageous premiums to obtain medical malpractice insurance.