Tort Reform – Insurance Crisis or Consumer Rip-Off?
Tort reform focuses on the idea of changing the rules applicable to the law or tort. Torts deal with compensation for wrongs and harm done by one party to another's person, property, or other protected interests such as reputation. The most prominent area of torts and tort reform are personal injury and medical malpractice. The Pennsylvania medical malpractice attorneys and personal injury lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling numerous tort cases since 1979.
Torts are civil wrongs that are recognized by law as grounds for a lawsuit. These wrongs result in an injury or harm forming the basis for a claim by the injured party. The primary goal of tort law is to provide relief for damages that were incurred and deter others from committing the same harms. The injured person may sue for an injunction to prevent the continuation of the harmful conduct or for monetary damages. Among the types of damages the injured party may recover are: (1) loss of earnings capacity, (2) pain and suffering; and (3) reasonable medical expenses. Damages also include present and future expected losses.
Torts are not just limited to personal injury and medical malpractice. Torts are also product liability, wrongful death, intellectual property infringement, defamation, intentional wrongs such as assault and battery, harm to tangible property, or harm to a company. Philadelphia personal injury and medical malpractice lawyer Jeffrey Reiff and the experienced Pennsylvania product liability lawyers and tort reform attorneys at Reiff and Bily will examine the facts, evaluate your claim, determine which parties and insurance companies are responsible, and organize all of the details of preparing and presenting your tort case.
Over several years, an important issue has been tort reform. Tort reform is meant to change how a personal injury is brought for a tort violation or place a limit on the damages awarded by the court. Medical malpractice includes incorrect medicine administration, improper or poorly conducted surgery, or other improper treatment. The Physician’s News Digest reported in 2001 that Pennsylvania medical malpractice settlements and judgments were second only to New York. Medical malpractice cases, including fraudulent claims, had placed a large burden on the insurance companies, which resulted in rising costs and a demand for change. American Medical News reports on a study that concluded that non-economic (non-financial) damage caps found that liability premium rates were reduced between an average of 17% and 25%. If a $250,000 nationwide cap were to pass, organized medicine would save $1.4 billion in premiums annually.
Joint liability applies when two or more persons are both responsible for causing an injury and several liability is when the parties are liable for only their own obligations. The parties could also be joint and several liable, relying on how much each party is liable for, or contributes to, the injuries. In 2005, the case of DeWeese v. Weaver, 880 A.2d 54 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2005) declared that Pennsylvania‘s 2002 tort reform rule that barred joint and several liability was unconstitutional. For more information, please see the American Tort Reform Association’s report. In 2006, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell vetoed a tort reform measure that called for civil defendants to pay only damages they were found to be directly responsible for. This was known as the “Fair Share Act.” A defendant found negligent or strictly liable for an injury would have been responsible only for their share of the total damages awarded to compensate the plaintiff rather than totally liable.
One of the more publicized tort reform cases is Stella Liebeck’s McDonalds Hot Coffee spill case. Ms. Liebeck had ordered coffee from McDonalds and upon opening it in the car, it spilled causing third-degree burns on her lower body. McDonalds was shown to have knowledge that their coffee was too hot and caused burns due to previous complaints over the years. The original verdict against McDonalds was for $200,000 in compensation and $2.7 million in punitive damages. The punitive damage award was reduced to $480,000 and a secret settlement was made. McDonalds ignored and failed to correct a known problem. A simple reduction in temperature would have helped prevent such horrible burns. Tort reform would favor massive corporations, like McDonalds, from correcting their mistakes since they would never have to pay millions of dollars for injuring a customer. Ms. Liebeck’s injuries could have been reduced if McDonalds had been deterred by having to pay for their willful and reckless negligence.
It is a given right to have a trial by jury. With tort reforms, restrictions are imposed on your rights; the right to a fair trial by jury and the right to get compensation for unjust damages. Corporate greed by insurance companies drive up insurance premiums since they don’t want to lose money by paying out rightful claims to innocent victims. By imposing a cap or preventing claims to be brought against guilty parties, our rights are stunted. Judgments and settlements are meant to deter big, greedy corporations from sweeping victim’s cries for help under the rug. By imposing restrictions via tort reform, the cries of the victims will never be heard. If work is done the first time and everyone does their duty, tort reform would not be necessary.
The Pennsylvania medical malpractice and personal injury lawyers at Reiff and Bily work on a contingent fee basis, charging a small percentage of the recovery. They will not get paid one cent unless there is a successful recovery. They have handled thousands of tort cases and have successfully recovered in excess of $150 million dollars from their opponents for physical injuries and emotional damages.
If you are in need of an attorney because you or someone you love has suffered a serious personal injury as a result of medical malpractice or other tort claim, please call the experienced Pennsylvania tort lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily.
