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Q&A: Sherman Joyce, American Tort Reform Association

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Q&A: Sherman Joyce, American Tort Reform Association

Sherman Joyce is president of the Washington-based American Tort Reform Association, a position he's held since 1994. He previously served as minority counsel to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. In a recent interview with Business Insurance Senior Editor Mark A. Hofmann, Mr. Joyce discussed the impact of ATRA's annual “Judicial Hellholes” report, the outlook for state-level tort reform and areas in which Congress might consider civil justice reform legislation. Edited excerpts follow.

Q: How would you describe the environment for tort reform in the states?

A: It's very strong. We've come off of a good year in 2014. We believe 2015 will be very active with significant reforms in numerous states.

I think the issue is continuing along the lines of activist state attorneys general and the hiring of outside counsel. I think we're going to deal with abuses of state consumer protection acts around the country. I think medical liability will continue to be major a focus at the state level.

Another issue is judgment interest issue. We continue to be in a very-low-interest-rate environment, and some states charge judgment interest of 10% or higher. Judgment interest is either pre- or post-judgment, but the idea is that during the appeal of the claim, the value of the claim would go up by that judgment interest amount. In an essentially still zero-interest-rate-environment, why are some of these interest rates still in double-digit figures?

Q: Did November's elections improve the outlook for tort reform in the states?

A: I think it did. We have begun to look at the landscape for 2015, and we think there will be a lot of activity. In some states like West Virginia in particular, the change in the leadership of the legislature will lead to strong opportunities for reform.

Q: The new edition of “Judicial Hellholes” just came out. Has “Judicial Hellholes” improved the outlook for tort reform?

A: We think there's no question that by putting a bright spotlight on the worst jurisdictions, the report has had a very positive impact and been a catalyst for reform.

There are some jurisdictions that continue to be problems, and we hope that there will be efforts to address some of these problems. For example, the New York asbestos court continues to get worse. We think public pressure is necessary to help bring about change. That's just one example.

Q: Are any federal-level reforms feasible in the new Congress?

A: I'll leave it to others to speculate about what the Congress may be able to do, but I think the case for a variety of reforms is overwhelming. As Congress considers changes to the (Patient Protection and) Affordable Care Act, it's an opportunity to deal with medical liability reform in a meaningful way.

I think the asbestos transparency issue case will get stronger as we learn more about what is revealed through the bankruptcy court in North Carolina. It's exposed a significant amount of fraud in asbestos claims when there are cases brought against individual companies and then (seeking) similar compensation for the same purposes from the asbestos trust funds, trying to find multiple sources for the same compensation. It's seemingly done without any kind of transparency. Congress should address that — whether they will or not remains to be seen. We think the case is overwhelmingly strong.

The Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act, I think, is particularly important to smaller businesses in providing them with a mechanism by which they can combat frivolous claims.

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