Local: City officially sides with those who want to make it harder to sue for your rights

The following press release landed in my inbox yesterday afternoon.

PEORIA, IL - A coalition of Illinois business organizations, including the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, Illinois Civil Justice League and Illinois Chamber of Commerce, today lauded Peoria City Council for passing a resolution calling on the Illinois legislature to pass meaningful lawsuit reform.

The resolution, which passed by a vote of eight to three and introduced by Councilman Patrick Nichting, urges lawmakers in Springfield “to enact meaningful, comprehensive lawsuit reform to protect our county’s employers, workers and consumers.”

“Illinois’ reputation for lawsuit abuse is compounding an already unfriendly business climate,” said Curt Mercadante, coalition spokesman. “Comprehensive lawsuit reform starts at the municipal level where employers live and operate their businesses. We are encouraged by the city council’s efforts to bring this important issue to the attention of our state legislators.”

The state’s worsening legal climate has long been an issue of concern for Illinois employers. According to a recent Harris survey conducted for the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, Illinois is ranked among the worst states in the country (46th out of 50 states) for lawsuit abuse. According to the Harris survey, 88% of respondents say that the number of frivolous lawsuits is a problem.

A recent actuarial study estimates that lawsuit abuse is costing Illinois more than $11 billion a year. For the nation as a whole the bill comes to $260 billion a year, or $886 for every American man, woman, and child.

“During the most recent legislative session, trial lawyer allies in Springfield successfully opposed every lawsuit reform measure, and advanced legislation to expand the profits on the Illinois trial lawyer industry,” said Mercadante. “This resolution sends a message loud and clear to the state legislature - we need lawsuit reform now.”

The members of the business coalition seek responsible legislation that changes the current legal environment of abuse and brings business and jobs back to Illinois. For more information, please visit www.landoflawsuits.com

The three council members who voted against this were Barbara Van Auken, Bil Spears and Gary Sandberg.

My two cents: The folks who back this make a lot of noise about some of the abuses of the legal system happening in some judicial districts in Illinois. That’s not what’s happening here in the Peoria area.

I’d like to see true reform that provides for there to be a price to pay for truly frivolous lawsuits, and not just new laws limiting jury awards and making it harder for everyone to seek redress in the courts. What’s good for “bidness” isn’t always what’s good for everyone, despite what Chamber of Commerce types claim.

If there are problems with certain judges and certain jurisdictions, then deal with that by appointing better quality judges. The legislature has no business stepping in and saying, “You know what? The guys we want to win in court aren’t the ones who are winning, so we’re going to stack the deck the other way.” It’s a solution that’s worse than the problem.

The beauty of the courts is that an underemployed single mom has equal rights under the law as the owner of the business that fired her illegally, or the insurance company that denied her claim or the company that made the toy smothered in lead-based paint. That concept drives business owners insane with fury, and they want their fixers in the state legislature to fix it for them. This is a bad bill.