Trial Lawyers Seeking Goodies in Congress (or What Does $233 Million Buy in Washington?)
January 12, 2010
“Coming off a likely victory in the healthcare debate, the trial lawyer lobby is gearing up for other items in its legislative agenda for the year, hoping to gain as much ground as possible before the midterm elections,” according to a report in Congress Daily (subscription required). Considering that lawyers/law firms funneled an astounding $233 million to federal campaigns in the last election cycle (thanks, opensecrets.org), as you might expect, that list is pretty long.
So what is the trial bar hoping $233 million buys this year in Washington? The goodies on the trial bar’s agenda include:
- Legislation to make it easier to sue manufacturers of medical devices;
- Legislation to make it easier to sue nursing homes;
- Legislation to make it harder for businesses to use alternative dispute procedures such as pre-dispute arbitration clauses in contracts;
- Legislation to make it easier to sue foreign manufacturers.
Of course, the trial bar already scored a huge win at the expense of doctors and patients when both the House and Senate balked at including medical liability reform in health care legislation. This despite the fact that everyone knows curbing frivolous malpractice cases reduces both health insurance premiums and the practice of costly defensive medicine.