Washington, D.C.-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) President Lisa A. Rickard offered the following statement on the polling data released Thursday by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America (now calling themselves the American Association for Justice). Read More
The case of the $54 million pants lawsuit has finally had its day in court. The judge issued her ruling finding in favor of the long-suffering defendants. Soon the jokes will subside, the disbelief will fade away, and the public will turn their attention to the next major headline.
But our broken legal system remains. Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C.-The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today urged Congress and the SEC to address the challenges to the competitiveness of U.S. capital markets. The call came as the House Committee on Financial Services met to discuss the role of the SEC in investor protection and market oversight. Read More
Washington, D.C.-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement on the ruling to dismiss the case against a Washington, D.C., dry cleaner brought by Judge Roy Pearson: "From the beginning, this $54 million lawsuit over a pair of lost pants has been the epitome of a frivolous lawsuit. We applaud the court's decision to dismiss it, and believe that it sent a strong message in ordering Judge Pearson to pay the defendant's legal bills. Read More
Washington, D.C.- U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement in reaction to Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood's lawsuit against State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. related to an agreement for a mass settlement of claims over Hurricane Katrina damage."This latest lawsuit by the Mississippi attorney general has little to do with compensating Mississippi homeowners for their Katrina losses, and more to do with plaintiffs' lawyers getting their cut of the compensation money. Read More
WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement on the recent order by U.S. District Court Judge James T. Giles designed to "facilitate the expeditious movement" of pending asbestos cases on his multidistrict litigation docket in Philadelphia. Read More
Washington, DC-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement on the deadline on amicus filings in support of the plaintiff's position in Stoneridge Investment Partners v. Scientific-Atlanta. The case, a securities class action pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, is widely viewed as precedent-setting that will determine whether or not a company can be sued simply because it did business with an alleged violator. Read More
CHARLESTON, WV.-Sixty percent of West Virginia small business owners say they are very or somewhat concerned about the impact of frivolous lawsuits on their businesses, and many alter business decisions as a result, according to a study by the nonpartisan market research firm Harris Interactive. Read More
America's broken lawsuit system is hurting our nation's small businesses.
That statement won't surprise anyone who has heard the saga of the D.C. judge and his $65 million pants suit. If ever there was a frivolous lawsuit, this is it.
But is the Drycleaner case a curious anomaly? Unfortunately, no.
The Institute for Legal Reform has just released two new studies showing the devastating effect frivolous lawsuits have on America's small businesses. Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C.-The tort system in the United States cost small businesses $98 billion in 2005, with the fear of lawsuits altering the way the small business owners make decisions, according to studies released at a Congressional hearing today by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR). Read More
Statement of Lisa A. Rickard, President of the US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, upon President Bush signing an Executive Order barring all contingency fee arrangements with outside plaintiffs' lawyers and expert witnesses who work on behalf of the United States Government: "Today's Executive Order banning contingency fee arrangements for outside trial lawyers and expert witnesses who work on behalf of the U.S. Government is a major step forward in the fight to change America's out-of-control lawsuit climate. Read More
Is your state a good one in which to do business?
How you answer that question could be affected by a number of factors, but in our increasingly lawsuit-happy society, many companies are looking at the fairness of a state's court system when deciding where to do business. Their decision affects jobs, tax revenue, and other economic development opportunities.
Each year, the Institute for Legal Reform joins with Harris Interactive to survey practicing corporate attorneys and general counsel, asking them a comprehensive battery of questions to determine what they think of each state's lawsuit climate. And once again this year the majority of our respondents affirmed that the litigation environment in a state is likely to impact their important business decisions, such as where to do business or locate their facilities. Read More
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) released a study today showing that Delaware has the best legal climate in the country, and West Virginia has the worst. Those are among the findings of Lawsuit Climate 2007: Ranking the States, an annual assessment of state liability systems conducted by the nonpartisan polling firm Harris Interactive. Read More
Washington, DC-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement in conjunction with today's hearing on judicial pay by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property: Read More
Washington, DC-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard released the following statement today on the lawsuit filed against paint manufacturers by Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann: "Lawsuits that rely on the novel legal theory of 'public nuisance' are a classic case of overreaching by a state attorney general. Attorney General Dann's lawsuit twists the purpose of public nuisance law and misapplies it because he can't make a case under traditional product liability law. Read More
WASHINGTON, DC - Statement of Lisa A. Rickard, President of the US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, on the passage of legislation by the Michigan House of Representatives vastly expanding the ability of trial lawyers to bring lawsuits against drug manufacturers: Read More
Washington, DC - Statement by Lisa Rickard, President of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform on today's opinion by Judge Harry Hanna of the Court of Common Pleas, Cuyahoga County, Ohio (Jack Kananian, et al., vs. Lorillard Tobacco Company, Case No. 442750): Read More
Washington, D.C. -- The US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform has begun an aggressive advertising campaign highlighting the electorate's strongly held view that Congress should fix America's broken lawsuit system. "Congress would enjoy overwhelming support from voters if Democrats and Republicans work together to curb frivolous lawsuits and to address abusive practices of the plaintiffs' bar like fraudulent medical screenings and excessive discovery," said ILR president Lisa A. Rickard. Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C.-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard issued the following statement on the Judicial Hellholes 2006 report released today by the American Tort Reform Foundation (ATRF): Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C.-U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa A. Rickard issued the following statement on the lawsuit filed by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer against automobile manufacturers for allegedly creating the "public nuisance" of global warming: Read More