Bush Wants New Congress to Limit Lawsuits

[Khephra]

Bush Wants New Congress to Limit Lawsuits


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush said on Wednesday he expects the new Congress to limit economy-damaging lawsuits by passing curbs on class action, asbestos injury and medical malpractice cases.

``I intend to take a legislative package to Congress which says, we expect the House and Senate to pass meaningful liability reform on asbestos, on class action, and medical liability,'' Bush told a White House economic conference.

The cost of litigation in America, Bush said, was making it more difficult to compete against other countries economically. Legal reform was a cornerstone of any good economic expansion program, he said.

``I am passionate on this subject,'' he said, adding that he would make it a ``priority issue,'' starting with his State of the Union address to Congress early next year.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/politics/politics-bush-lawsuits.html

So that's why there's a major tort reform speech today on CSPAN. Gotta prime the goosesteppers with their talking points.

[liberal N proud]

1. More protection for the coprorate criminals

"Friends of Bush"

[truthisfreedom]

2. want want want!

thug congress soaks itself in tears.

[zann725]

27. gimme...gimme...gimme...

all your money and sons for war. And if we hurt you in our greed, so be it! Even Charles Dickens couldn't imagine anything so 'dark.'

[teryang]

3. Protecting the aristocrats from the people by violating

...the constitutional right of access to the courts. CSPAN had a guest on yesterday who showed the total fraud of the so called "tort reform" movement.

[LynnTheDem]

4. bush is a passionate ignoramus

What a total idiot he is. And some day, his supporters will see bush as the rest of the world does; an ignorant petty small-minded fool.

[rodeodance]

17. oh but ....``I am passionate on this subject,''

[SammyWinstonJack]

18. he's "passionate" all right.

He's passionate on protecting his Corrupt Corporate Campaign Contributors! :mad:

[LynnTheDem]

20. But can he spell it?

Not likely! :D

[Sandpiper]

5. The Defective Product - Malpractice Protection Act

Is what the new bill will be called.

[LiberalFighter]

29. We should use that against them.

They want to protect companies that make defective products that injure or kill people.

They want to protect doctors and hospitals that are responsible for malpractice that kills or injures people.

I guess their interest is not in the people but the corporates.

[countryjake]

6. I can see why he's so passionate...

Study Warns US Faces Asbestos Disease Crisis

Asbestos Litigation Reform Reconsidered

USAction Opposes New Asbestos Proposal - Launches TV Ad Opposing Windfalls to
Corporations Like Halliburton>

[mutius]

7. 250,000 max

Young man in his early twenties get messed up by a doctor, after he is expected to live 250,000 for the rest of his life. :crazy:

[24HRrnr]

22. $250K?

Isn't that the "pain and suffering" award limit and not the limit for economic damages. The young man will receive more and the largest part of it will be the economic damages. Look for the real battle to take place there....you know, the "well, he doesn't have any skills, so he doesn't deserve as much...."

[Bono71]

34. Correct...it is the pain and suffering portion.

[3days]

8. Nice to see where his passion is

Being it's not on the assault weapons ban that he let die.

[neweurope]

9. "class action"? Do I translate this right as

"possibility for a whole groupt to go to court"?

If so that would be a severe blow. Boy, they're moving fast. And all of this even before coronation. It's very chilling.

[The Backlash Cometh]

10. I'm sure that also includes homeowners sueing developers.

That would surely help the Jeb & George cronies.

[AzDar]

11. He is simply WRONG about everything....Everything!! n/t

[grumpy old fart]

12. The Fuck the Injured and Maimed Act......FIMA? n/t

[grumpy old fart]

13. Save the Underhanded Corporate Killers Act....SUCKA? n/t

[grumpy old fart]

14. Protect the Rich Irresponsible Corporate Killers Statute......PRICKS?

[maddezmom]

15. asbestos, on class action, and medical liability

yup, protecting his donors and the Veep. :(

[rodeodance]

16. included the 'frivolous" German lawsuit against Rummy!!

[hatrack]

19. 88th Verse, Same As The First!

Blahblahblah tort reform blahblabblah frivolous lawsuits blahblahblah trial lawyers blahblahblah liberal trial lawyers blahblahblah liberal Democrat trial lawyers blahblahblah.

[tsuki]

21. Reform our legal system...except when Rush needs a loophole.

[GarySeven]

23. What IS a "frivolous lawsuit?"

Judges regularly declare lawsuits "frivolous" if they have no legal basis - in fact, lawyers who file them (or prisoners filing pro se) are regularly sanctioned by courts.

"Frivolous" is actually a term of art used by defendants to challenge a lawsuit, not in a court of law but in a court of public opinion. By any real measure ANY lawsuit that survives the initial challenges to evidence and cause of action is NOT frivolous; the process has determined that whatever the plaintiff claims to have happened deserves at least a hearing before a jury. The process itself weeds out "frivolous" matters, or, alternately, shows the defense that the evidence is so strong they will certainly face a large judgment and should settle with the plaintiff.

I notice that in all the Bush Administration's claims about "frivolous medical malpractice cases" they never cite ONE example of such a case. In point of fact there CAN NEVER BE a "frivolous" malpractice claim because those actions are among the most complex to try in court. NO lawyer would ever take a malpractice case unless he were CERTAIN he had more than a 50 percent chance of winning. To prove med mal, you must show that the health care provider did not follow what the medical establishment itself has determined to be a proper course of care. To do that, a lawyer must get other doctors to tell a jury what that proper course of care is and exactly where the defendant failed.

BTW, the lawyer DOESN'T GET PAID unless he wins; his take on the judgment (up to 40 percent) may seem high, but it actually pays for all the work and research a lawyer's team has done to prepare for a case - and sometimes that can take up to a decade. Could you work on something for 10 years without any payment? Lawyers must take cases they are relatively certain will have a payout - but now the Bushies want to limit those payouts, removing a lawyer's incentive to take a case. That may seem fine to some people -- until they take medication that a company KNEW would create heart trouble, or have some other encounter with a company that puts profits over consumer service.

It does cost thousands of dollars to litigate any lawsuit, but that is often because the defense refuses to admit a mistake or liability. Jurors punish such defendants by ordering them to pay high punitives. But in almost all instances the damages awards issued by the jury - including the VERY worthwhile "McDonald's Coffee Case" - is reduced by the trial court.

As usual, the Bush Administration is trying to hoodwink people into supporting something that will actually harm them. The civil jury system exists not only to protect consumers, but also to protect capitalism itself by giving consumers a weapon to punish those businesses that put out dangerous products or put people at risk. The voters THINK they are doing something to strengthen the economy; what they are really doing is making it financially impossible for lawyers to take on the cases that will protect them as consumers.

[durablend]

24. The lord will protect them...

Don't need any nasty lawsuits enacted by the devil's children (lawyers) when a trip to church to visit the faith healer will suffice.

:crazy:

[Bake]

37. A frivolous lawsuit is any lawsuit filed against YOU!

As we say in the defense bar ...

We defense lawyers (I do a lot of asbestos work), by the way, don't want tort reform either, since our business is defending the companies with potential asbestos liability.

Bake, Esq.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

25. Three words

Cheney's Halliburton Fuckup

I seem to recall his High Lordship had something to do with an asbestos cleanup snafu, didn't he? But, naahhhh, it couldn't-- it WOULDN'T have anything to do with THAT!

[Contrary1]

26. I was the victim of malpractice...

The radiologist screwed up on a routine mammogram. He/she saw the tumor,
circled it, drew an arrow and a question mark, and yet still failed to mention it in
a written report.

Six months later, I found it myself. It had spread beyond the original tumor. I
was told that unless I could prove that the radiologist's omission caused
additional damage (ie: I was dying), I would not prevail.


Even the oncologist said he could not testify with absolute certainty what the
6 month delay cost me. After 3 surgeries and 4 rounds of chemo, I show no
evidence of cancer...but I will always wonder.

Dubya is passionate about it. Big deal. Perhaps he would feel differently if
Laura's life (and body) was just like mine.

[iamjoy]

28. Punitive Damages...

when they talk about caps on "non-economic" damages, they forget the whole purpose of punitive damages. Punitive damages are *supposed* to hurt the defendent when they are found in the wrong. They are supposed to hurt enough to serve as a dis-incentive for malpractice.

If we limit govt regulation, and limit malpractice awards, companies will have little if any incentive to make their products safe. Doctors will have greater incentive to "rush" care or not recommend certain procedures.

[VegasWolf]

30. Gotta protect those mega Corporations!!! People, what people? n/t

[Ediacara]

31. How about

We let Bush inhale asbestos, let the tiny, wiry, asbestos fibers pierce holes in the cells of his lungs, let his lungs bleed from the inside and let those mutilated cells become cancerous.

And then let's dare him to sue us.

[Megahurtz]

32. Oh My God!!!

WHAT NEXT??? :scared:

Bushitler is moving way too fast here.

The GOP make laws like these just so they can get away with their own criminal acts.

What is this place, turning into the Wild West, where we have to settle our own scores?

Or is it getting more like the Monarchy of the middle ages, the gluttonous rich living in abundance, and the poor in slavery running around in rags?

Pretty soon we're going to need a fucking Robin Hood or something.

[underpants]

33. Why that sounds like government meddling with the capitalist system

And we don't want that now do we....right?

[depakid]

35. A Bush never forgets or forgives a slight

Maybe the University of Texas should have accepted him as a law student.

[countryjake]

36. View Cartoon on Halliburton & the Asbestos Bailout

http://64.95.53.25/ctsg/progressive/AmericanFamilyVoices/hal.swf

[merh]

38. Distraction, distraction, distraction

Distract those damned lawyers focused on the election irregularities and make them focus on tort reform. Also, if lawyers are suing him, they are doing it because they hate him for election reform, not because the election was a farce.