CHANGE MY LOCATION
Special Reports
California News
Multimedia News
Judicial hellholes | Lawsuit magnets
SEE HOW THIS STORY DEVELOPED
Related Topics:
)
Liability lawyers seek opportunities to file suits where judges tend to interpret the law and judicial processes with a pronounced bias in favor of liability suits and plaintiffs.
A Judicial Hellhole is defined by the American Tort Reform Association as a state or locality where judges tend to interpret the law and judicial processes with a pronounced bias in favor of liability suits and plaintiffs. Not surprisingly then, liability lawyers seek opportunities to file suits in such localities.
Here is how ATRA describes the current top three Judicial Hellholes in its annual compilation. An updated ranking will be released in late December.
1. West Virginia
West Virginia courts have “served as the home field for plaintiffs’ attorneys determined to bring corporations to their knees.” The state has a history of alliances and close personal connections among personal injury lawyers, the state’s attorney general, and local judges. Personal injury lawyers prefer West Virginia courts because they can pick-and-choose where they file claims. Also, a state legal rule allows a claimant to collect cash simply by showing that he was exposed to a potentially dangerous substance, even if he has no sign of injury.
2. South Florida
South Florida has a reputation for high awards, improper evidentiary rulings, class actions, asbestos cases, and medical malpractice payouts. This year, the state’s highest court threw out a $145 billion award against the tobacco industry, that included the largest punitive damage award in American history.
3. Rio Grande Valley and Gulf Coast, Texas
Rio Grande Valley and Gulf Coast, Texas, have a reputation as a “plaintiff paradise.” It is an area where extremely weak evidence can net multimillion dollar awards; jurors have relationships with the litigants in their cases; car accident lawsuits are decided without jurors knowing all the facts, including that the plaintiff was not wearing a seatbelt; and huge awards in asbestos cases are overturned due to junk science.
"Lawyers Gone Wild" is a series of special reports by The Examiner looking at the cost and consequences of class action lawsuit abuse in the United States. Read the latest articles in the series.
Comments from Examiner Readers
5:32 PM MST on Sat., Oct. 27, 2007 re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
3:47 PM MST on Mon., Oct. 8, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
10:52 AM MST on Sat., Sep. 29, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
7:45 AM MST on Mon., Sep. 24, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
1:14 AM MST on Sun., Sep. 23, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
1:12 AM MST on Sun., Sep. 23, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
11:50 AM MST on Sat., Sep. 22, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
11:47 AM MST on Sat., Sep. 22, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
9:16 PM MST on Fri., Sep. 21, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
7:09 PM MST on Fri., Sep. 21, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
4:38 PM MST on Fri., Sep. 21, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
7:57 AM MST on Sat., Sep. 15, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
1:49 PM MST on Fri., Sep. 14, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
10:43 AM MST on Fri., Sep. 14, 2007
re: "Rogues gallery of class action attorneys"
Report as inappropriate
P.R.K. said:
These LEECHES have ruined our economy.
128 agree | 102 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
The list doesnt include John Edwards...Made millions suing doctors.
113 agree | 109 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
Frivolous lawsuits of pure agenda, all should be thrown out of court and the plaintiffs should be sued by the court as criminals.
149 agree | 83 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Not as Stupid as Some said:
All this complaining about crooked lawyers....hopefully not from any registered DemoRATS. Passion for Hillary and contempt for greedy crooked lawyers? Wazup HYPOCRITES?
151 agree | 112 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
Rather, all politicians were once a lawyer.
100 agree | 103 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
The profession of "attorney at law" should be completely regulated by the federal government. Their earnings and wages should be rated according to a civil servant's GS level. Of course this could never actually happen since every rotten politician inevitably becomes a lawyer.
137 agree | 112 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Schratboy said:
You can always expect lawyers to defend other lawyers, even of the class-action variety. It's part of the social contract behavior that derived from a recessive cockroach gene.
131 agree | 93 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
These class action lawyers are the scum of the earth. I have nothing but contempt for what they do and their unctuous and vile smelling lives. They've wrought more pain and suffering on the populace, stealing the productivity of working Americans through their viper-like poisonous pens and courtroom buffoonery. Indeed, all these people would make ideal animals for lab experimentation. I don't even think PETA would object.
116 agree | 98 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Republican Lawyer said:
Money makes the world go ‘round, and although lawyers are profiting from these cases, so are their clients. Personal injury cases on this scale cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to litigate, and the lawyer does not get paid unless he wins. The fact is, we live in a capitalists society; not a socialist, welfare state. When is the last time any one of you jealous, petty, lazy, life-hating idiots contributed to society?
149 agree | 105 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Gabe said:
To all those who think trial lawyers are out to protect you from big corporatons, you better think again. What trial lawyer would honestly help you if they didn't think a large chunk of change could come they're way? The trial lawyers dont give a *blank* about you; its all about the money honey. And no it doesn't make America better, it makes it worse by raising the price of everything and especially our health insurance, you can thank your friends the trial lawyers for that. Greedy plantiffs and greedy lawyers are the only ones who win.
171 agree | 100 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
Greedy, Self-serving, Manipulating Trial Loyers..."lawyers"... Scum of the Earth!
151 agree | 94 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Examiner Reader said:
This is another piece of schlock, just badly researched, if at all. Take your piece on Mark Lanier. Anyone who knows anything about the Vioxx litigation knows that a) the personal injury claims are not part a class action and b) none of those cases are getting settled, much less for "fat" money. The manufacturer had adopted a policy of trying all the cases that are being filed against it, so the ones that are resulting in plaintiff's verdicts are the ones that a jury has found have merit -- just the opposite of being frivolous. I really wonder if you understand the legal system at all. I have read all of the recent "lawsuit abuse" articles, and if they were a high school term paper, I would give you a D -- bad research, poor understanding of the subject matter, and quite honestly, not very well written. That is at least one thing that you should be able to get right. Shame on you for putting this garbage out.
171 agree | 102 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
ALBERT said:
Trial lawyers are the only defense we have to protect American people against corrupt and greedy corporate America. You are my heroes.
141 agree | 134 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree
Chuck said:
You forgot John Edwards. He has 50 million and all of it was from suing people and corporations. Now he wants to be President. Trial lawyers will back him for sure.
113 agree | 123 disagree
Vote on this comment: I agree or I disagree