Lawsuits Cause Business Failures

The Heartland Institute produced this story by Conrad F. Meier which outlines the current status of US Senate legislation aimed at addressing the nation's asbestos lawsuit crisis.

Asbestos injury compensation claims have been backing up in the court system for years; the fund has been proposed as a way to resolve claims more quickly.

Some 67 companies already have been driven into bankruptcy by claims both legitimate and spurious.

More than 200,000 asbestos tort claims are pending nationwide against more than 8,000 corporations. Many of the defendant companies never made asbestos products. The Senate measure would end those lawsuits and protect firms against any future suits asbestos victims might bring.

These cases follow the same pattern of other tort complaints, in that, most of the award money goes to the trial lawyers while companies are forced into bankruptcy. It's another example of why this country needs tort reform.

Thanks to Dissecting Leftism.