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Understanding Tort Litigation and Your Legal Rights
In recent years, the term “tort reform” has become extremely popular among politicians, businesses, and lobbyists. Unfortunately, the facts and implications of many proposed tort reforms are usually less than clear to most of the general population. The personal injury lawyers of Shrager, Spivey & Sachs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania want to clarify the basic elements of tort law, as well as debunk some of the most pernicious and prevalent myths about so-called “frivolous” lawsuits and medical malpractice litigation. The legal rights of personal injury victims in this country are under attack, and our attorneys believe that protecting those rights is of the utmost importance. Learn more below.
- What is a tort?
- What is tort reform and why is it important to protect tort law?
- The Truth about Torts
- Medical malpractice litigation
- “Frivolous” lawsuits
- Protecting the legal rights of victims
What is a Tort?
Originating from the French legal term "avoir tort", meaning “to have wronged”, a tort case pertains to the wrongful harm of a person’s bodily security, reputation, financial resources, and tangible property. Tort law stands apart from criminal law, contract law, restitution, and the law of equity – the goal of a tort case is to remedy and restore the harm and loss to the plaintiff by awarding some form of compensation. In addition to compensation, plaintiffs may also receive damages for their intangible, but very real, emotional pain and suffering (sometimes referred to as “non-pecuniary consequences”).
Medical malpractice and personal injury are two of the best examples of cases brought under tort law. For instance, if found at fault, a plastic surgeon sued by a patient for unintentionally causing nerve damage following a procedure would not go to jail; but the doctor would most likely have to pay for the medical bills and expenses of the victim and even compensate for the pain, suffering, and embarrassment felt by the victim.
Sometimes there are numerous victims of the same defendant, and together they file what is known as a mass tort claim. The personal injury lawsuits brought against Merck & Co. for their arthritis drug Vioxx® is an example of mass tort.
What is Tort Reform and why should Tort Law be protected?
The concept of tort reform has become a very political issue since the 2000 presidential election. In general, advocates of tort reform claim that tort cases are clogging up our courts, to the detriment of both our judicial system and economy. Although some tort reforms are aimed at improving the efficiency of our courts, the primary understanding in politics and academics is that tort reforms attempt to limit tort litigation and the amount of compensation available to victims.
At Shrager, Spivey & Sachs, we believe that the current methods of suggested tort reform seek to limit the rights of victims and could potentially prevent justice from being served to the parties responsible for their injury or harm. In fact, many of the proposed reforms could even protect the very people who caused or facilitated the damage inflicted upon the victim.
The Truth about Torts
While advocates of tort reform have done their best to persuade the public that torts are frivolous wastes of time and that the plaintiffs in tort cases are only concerned with financial gain, the facts reveal a much different reality. While there are those who would like to take advantage of the system, there is significant evidence to demonstrate the difficulty and rarity of tort abuse. In fact, there is strong evidence against most of the claims made by opponents of tort law.
A May 2005 report by the Economic Policy Institute asserts that not only are insurance companies among the most vocal and significant supporters of radical tort reform, but that the dramatic economic costs they ascribe to tort litigation is inflated to include the administrative, case-handling, and legal fees of the insurance companies in addition to the awarded compensation. What’s more, despite allegations that tort litigation has “exploded” and is hurting businesses, insurance industry profits more than doubled between 2000 and 2004. The full text of this report, as well as numerous other valuable reports and studies on tort law, is available from the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association.
Below are some important facts that expose the truth about medical malpractice and “frivolous” torts.
Medical Malpractice Litigation
In his May 2006 report on medical malpractice litigation in Pennsylvania for the Pennsylvania Bar Association, Neil Vidmar, Ph.D. addresses the plight of malpractice victims and claims about medical malpractice torts in our state. Below are four of his most important assertions:
- “Juries are often characterized as biased against doctors, incompetent and irresponsible, but research shows that doctors win in more than two out of three cases tried to juries and that the amounts of jury awards are positively related to the seriousness of the injury. Trial judges and neutral medical experts tend to agree with jury verdicts…jury awards constitute only a small fraction (between 5 percent and 7 percent) of all medical malpractice payouts; most cases are settled prior to trial.”
- “An examination of the jury awards over $1 million shows that the patients in these cases suffered very severe injuries or death.”
- “Research shows that caps on pain and suffering are unfair to patients with the most severe injuries, to women, to elderly persons and to children. While caps reduce the amounts of payments to negligently injured patients, research does not support the proposition that caps reduce the liability insurance premiums of doctors.”
- “Despite claims that Pennsylvania is losing doctors to other states as a result of high liability insurance premiums, official statistics from the American Medical Association and from the Federation of State Licensing Boards show an actual per capita increase in treating physicians.”
For more information, the entire report is available online through the Pennsylvania Bar Association.
“Frivolous” Lawsuits
For decades, businesses have been pushing tort reform at Congress and claiming that “frivolous” lawsuits are hindering job growth, choking economic development, and clogging up the judicial system. Nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is that nearly all of these so-called “frivolous” tort cases are neither frivolous nor lucrative. In reality, myths about outrageous jury awards are so unfounded, a Los Angeles Times reporter dubbed them “legal urban legends” in an August 14, 2005 article.
The American Trial Lawyers Association (AAJ) states on its website that, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics from 2005, the number of tort cases resolved in U.S. district courts experienced a 79 percent decrease between 1985 and 2003. On the state level, the number of tort cases dropped by nearly 32 percent between 1992 and 2001. Even more incredible are the statistics confirming that while the amount of doctors in the U.S. has steadily increased, the amount of medical malpractice fillings have actually declined.
AAJ’s web page on “frivolous” lawsuits illuminates the false propaganda spread across our country by those who oppose tort litigation. Bringing “frivolous” lawsuits is not in the best interest of either the plaintiff or the attorney; when an attorney takes a case on contingency, this means they do not get compensated unless the client wins, and working long hours on an inviable case guaranteed to be thrown out by a judge would be self-defeating. Also, under “Rule 11”, sanctions already exist for attorneys who bring frivolous claims. Finally, given the comprehensive oversight and authority of judges, a clearly frivolous case can be thrown out at any time.
Protecting the Legal Rights of Victims
The medical malpractice and personal injury lawyers of Shrager, Spivey & Sachs are passionate about the law, and are deeply committed to protecting the legal rights of victims and their families.
When people go to their doctor, take a prescribed medication, drive their car, or take a walk through a park, they trust that they will be safe. They trust that their doctor knows the best way to help them heal, and that the pills they swallow will make them feel better. They trust that other drivers will use standard safety rules and caution on the road. They trust that the park they walk through will not harbor dangerous hazards that could cause them serious injury.
Our attorneys believe that people should continue to place trust in the world they live in. But the fact of the matter is that everyday, all around us, people are injured by medical negligence, reckless driving, preventable premises hazards, and so much more. That is why we support tort litigation, and why we work tirelessly to secure the highest compensation possible for our clients.
If you or someone you love has been injured as a result of medical malpractice or some other form of personal injury, please contact the Pennsylvania law firm of Shrager, Spivey & Sachs to set up a free case review. Let us help you fight for justice.
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For more information on tort reform issues, or to consult with a member of our legal team, contact the attorneys of Shrager, Spivey & Sachs today.
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Shrager, Spivey & Sachs
Two Commerce Square, 32nd Floor
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103
Ph: 800.568.5868
Fx: 215.568.7495
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