Taking on Tort Reform… and Doing Something

The topic of Tort Reform never goes away, largely because so few states ever do anything to rein in the Trial Bar’s excesses and advantages…until Florida’s governor signed a bill that is a model for the other states.
To curb legal system abuse and frivolous lawsuits by Gov. Ron DeSantis inked  H.B. 837, which was approved by the Florida Senate by a vote of 23-15 after passing the House.
The rule redoes the standards for bad faith actions to spur good faith between parties and provide consumer protections. It cuts one-way attorney fees, which have allowed policyholders to collect their legal costs from insurers if they win a dispute over claims. It also eliminates fee multipliers for all lines of insurance, which have allowed plaintiffs’ attorneys to use a multiplier on top of a so-called “Lodestar” fee to get  higher fees when they prevail in litigation.
 
The bill limits recovery if a plaintiff is found to be more than 50% at fault, expands immunity from liability for property owners defending against criminal acts on their property, provides uniform standards for juries in calculating medical damages and reduces the statute of limitations for general negligence cases from four to two years.
 
Insurers predictably hailed the bill’s passage including the Washington-based American Property Casualty Insurance Association.
 
I believe that the reforms will move the needle toward fairness in Florida’s and serve as an exemplar – I hope so. The governor’s stated goal is to reduce the excessive number of frivolous lawsuits being filed and to make it more inviting for insurers to increase the availability and limits. “Greater fairness and balance will be good for Florida, bringing much-needed stability,” Mr. Aldredge said.
Florida’s legal system abuse has added to the challenges of providing insurance coverage in the state, Neil Aldredge, president and CEO of the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, said in a statement. The Washington-based American Tort Reform Association said the package of reforms has the potential to rebalance the state’s legal system for years to come and would promote transparency in damages. “Transparency in damages is critical to ensuring that the legal system is fair and just,” ATRA President Tiger Joyce said in the statement.
 
Transparency and reform takes courage and that is what Governor De Santis demonstrated in this case versus a powerful lobby.
 
Bravo.