PA Coalition for Civil Justice Reform

Header Right

Uncategorized

By

PCCJR’s Curt Schroder speaks out on ‘Judicial Hellhole’ designation

“Every plaintiff wants to file in Philadelphia and every defendant wants to stay out of Philadelphia at all costs.”

PCCJR Executive Director Curt Schroder was recently featured in a video focusing in on the Pennsylvania city’s 2017-2018 designation as a “Judicial Hellhole” by the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA). “I always say the fastest growing part of the economy in Philadelphia is litigation tourism.” That is exactly what landed the “City of Unbrotherly Torts” back on the ATRA list of shame after out-of-state mass tort filings surged, along with multi-million dollar verdicts.

By

Listen Inaugural Broadcast of Lawsuit Watch

February 23, 2018|WFLY Radio

This month WFYL Radio premiered the broadcast of Lawsuit Watch; a 30-minute program dedicated to exploring the impact of lawsuits on individuals, Pennsylvania, and our economy. In our inaugural broadcast, we discussed recent efforts in Pennsylvania to end lawsuit abuse, Philadelphia’s status as a “Judicial Hellhole” and the current system of electing judges in Pennsylvania.

Listen to the full podcast here!

Lawsuit Watch airs on the fourth Monday of every month at 8:30 am on WFYL 1180 am. WFYL broadcasts live over the web and will post the program as a podcast after each airing.

 

By

Philadelphia’s ‘Hellhole’ status up for debate, but group points at huge Xarelto verdict

The Penn Record

by Nicholas Malfitano |Dec. 21, 2017, 12:19pm

HARRISBURG – A recent, massive Philadelphia verdict that bucked a small national trend shows the city’s court isn’t treating businesses fairly, Pennsylvania’s legal reform group says.

But the Philadelphia Bar Association disputes the assertion that the city is a “Judicial Hellhole” – a title given annually by the American Tort Reform Association to jurisdictions it deems problematic for companies.

The verdict – the first reached in Philadelphia’s Complex Litigation Center, which is handling more than 1,500 cases over the blood-thinner Xarelto – was the first win nationally for plaintiffs and included a whopping punitive damages award.

“After three verdicts for the defense in the federal court Xarelto bellwether trials, the Philadelphia court awarded $27.8 million to a Xarelto plaintiff,” said Curt Schroder, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Coalition for Civil Justice Reform.

“Of that amount, only $1.8 million was awarded to compensate the plaintiff for alleged injuries. The punitive damages awarded in the amount of $26 million were 14 times the amount of compensatory damages.

“No one wants to be sued, but to be sued in Philadelphia often subjects a defendant to outlandish and unreasonable damages.”

Schroder stated 85 percent of businesses responding to a U.S. Chamber Institute of Legal Reform report indicate that a state’s lawsuit climate is “an important factor in deciding where to locate and grow their businesses.

The same report saw Pennsylvania rank 38th out of 50 states in litigation climate, with medical malpractice payouts in Pennsylvania being among the highest in the nation on a per capita basis. The ILR owns the Pennsylvania Record.

Earlier in December, ATRA named the city a Judicial Hellhole, focusing on Philadelphia’s CLC. The state Supreme Court is also an area of concern for ATRA.

“The ATRA Judicial Hellholes report is a stark reminder that in Pennsylvania, employers and health care providers still face an uphill struggle in court, especially in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas,” Schroder said.

“The findings in this report are consistent with other studies that have been critical of the impact of Pennsylvania’s courts on job creation and health care availability.”

The CLC has long been a haven for out-of-state plaintiffs. The percentage of claims belonging to out-of-state plaintiffs has traditionally been in the high 80s. In 2016, the percentage for pharmaceutical lawsuits dropped to 74 percent.

However, in 2017, CLC stats show that figure has jumped to an unprecedented 94 percent.

Currently, more than 6,400 cases have been filed in the Risperdal mass tort litigation in Philadelphia and more than 1,560 cases in Xarelto mass tort litigation.

Schroder says it begs the question of why the suits were filed in Philadelphia County, as opposed to York County, Lancaster County or Tioga County instead.

“If Pennsylvania has jurisdiction, then certainly plaintiffs attorneys could bring suit in other parts of the state. The obvious answer is that in most counties other than Philadelphia, a defendant still has a reasonable chance at winning or a reasonable verdict if found liable. Filing suit outside of Philadelphia would not be a lucrative payday for the attorney,” Schroder said.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Deborah R. Gross issued a statement criticizing the ATRA report on behalf of the organization, which numbers 12,000 attorney members among its ranks.

“We condemn this unwarranted and degrading attack on our courts, which undermines public confidence in our judicial system. Philadelphia’s courts are among the finest in the country,” Gross stated.

Gross explained per the 2016 First Judicial District Annual Report, approximately 90 percent of civil cases filed in Philadelphia were disposed within 24 months of their initial filing.

“Innovative programs, such as the Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program, Veterans Court, Mental Health Court and Project Dawn have been introduced to address the economic and social problems that plague our city. The Commerce Court program has a well-deserved excellent reputation for its expert handling of business disputes in a timely fashion, with 94 percent of its complex cases being disposed within 24 months of initial filing,” Gross said.

Gross also pointed out the court’s Complex Litigation Center (CLC) had 6,196 total cases pending in 2016, with 5,601 of them being pharmaceutical cases and 595 being asbestos cases.

“These court programs and others serve as models that other court systems seek to emulate. Each year, thousands of Philadelphians – individuals, businesses, plaintiffs and defendants – rely on our courts to deliver fair and speedy justice,” Gross said.

“This special interest group is entitled to its opinion. However, words matter and so do perceptions. The attempt to diminish faith in our judicial system is an attack on our democratic process.

“As guardians of justice, it is our responsibility as lawyers to protect and defend the courts against this unwarranted and baseless label.”

From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nickpennrecord@gmail.com

https://pennrecord.com/stories/511297257-philadelphia-s-hellhole-status-up-for-debate-but-group-points-at-huge-xarelto-verdict

[Read more…] about Philadelphia’s ‘Hellhole’ status up for debate, but group points at huge Xarelto verdict

By

Will SCOTUS Ruling Affect Philadelphia Court, Where 94% Of New Plaintiffs Are From Out Of State?

Via Forbes by Nicholas Malfitano | Aug. 17, 2017

Out-of-state plaintiffs flocked to Philadelphia this year to file lawsuits over prescription drugs, but a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision might deter that practice in the future.

Thousands of claimants who have brought their lawsuits in Philadelphia will have to see if pharmaceutical companies like Johnson & Johnson decide to use a June 19 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that found an out-of-state plaintiff couldn’t file suit in California.

Supreme Court justices ruled 8-1 in favor of Bristol Myers-Squibb after the company argued plaintiffs living outside California who alleged injury from BMS’s blood thinner Plavix should not be able to sue the company in that state.

The Supreme Court delivered an opinion that, in effect, could spell the end of the all-inclusive view of personal jurisdiction. Plavix was not designed or made in California, and the company is headquartered in New York.

“Non-residents can sue in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas if the defendant is either incorporated in Pennsylvania (not very likely) or has a principal place of business in Pennsylvania (more likely),” said James Beck, Senior Life Sciences Policy Analyst for Reed Smith in Philadelphia.

Two of the biggest mass tort programs in the Philadelphia Complex Litigation Center process lawsuits filed over Risperdal, which is produced by Janssen Pharmaceuticals (a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary) and allegedly causes boys to develop breasts, and Xarelto, a blood-thinner made by Bayer and Johnson & Johnson that allegedly causes bleeding events.

By

It’s a New Day–Podcast

Courts need to be fair for everyone.  WFLY’s Kim Kennedy recently dedicated an entire hour of It’s a New Day to discuss changes being considered in Pennsylvania to prevent frivolous lawsuits. Hear the entire discussion on this podcast on how we can make the PA courts make sense and be sure to let us know what you think!

 

By

Lawmaker thinks his bill protecting landowners from lawsuits will be passed

Via PennRecord by Glenn Minnis |Jul. 20, 2017

HARRISBURG – Rep. Dan Moul, R- Adams, thinks he can finally see the finish line in his fight to protect landowners from liability for the recreational use of their lands.

After seven years of pushing the bill, Moul expects House Bill 544 to pass through the House any day now before heading to the Senate and ultimately the desk of Gov. Tom Wolf for his signature.

“I’ve got assurances on this,” Moul told the Pennsylvania Record. “I think this time will be the charm. It’s a good bill, and I believe the governor will jump at the chance to sign it once it lands on his desk.”

Moul concedes that to get to this point, he has had to make almost as many concessions as there have been battles. To finally move the bill along, he agreed to take a provision out of it that would have required anyone unsuccessfully suing a landowner in such a scenario to be responsible for paying legal expenses.

“From day one, the trial attorneys have fought against that,” he said. “We finally had to amend that part out. I figured it was better to get at least a half of loaf over no loaf at all.”

The bill, which blocks all such lawsuits unless “extraneous circumstances” are involved, had the support of more than 30 organizations as its made its way through the legislature.

The Pennsylvania Coalition for Civil Justice Reform went as far as to send a letter to committee members in support of the bill.

“They and many other organizations have answered the bell in the way they have thrown their support behind this,” he said.

Up until now, many landowners had taken to prohibiting the use of their land for all such activities as their sole defense against mounting lawsuits.