POLITICS: Bush Pushes to Limit Class-Action Suits

President Bush pressured Congress on Wednesday to act swiftly to pass legislation restricting class-action lawsuits, arguing that "frivolous" claims harmed economic prosperity.

On Capitol Hill, senators debated and defeated a number of suggested amendments to the bill, known as the Class Action Fairness Act. The measure would move a significant number of consumer-protection suits and other class actions from state to federal courts, which are considered friendlier to business.

The bill, which came close to passing Congress last year, is on a fast track for Senate approval by the end of the week.

Business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, strongly support the class-action legislation, which they claim will help prevent settlements in which lawyers collect huge fees while consumers get little or nothing.

Opponents say the bill would make it harder for ordinary citizens with limited resources to take on corporations with unfair business practices.

"In its current form, this bill is just another example of the administration's misguided priorities - putting the interests of big companies ahead of America's working families," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), who offered an amendment, which was defeated, that would have allowed civil rights and labor lawsuits to stay in state court.

latimes
...

...critics claim the bill would make it too difficult for wronged citizens to have their day in court and see justice meted out. On Monday, attorneys general of 15 states sent a letter to the Senate leadership arguing that the bill as it stands would "result in far greater harm than good."

"If you're a community that's suffering from groundwater contamination or an oil spill or a tank explosion or air contamination from nearby factory farms, you may have to wait for years to even get your case heard, much less be given a fair chance from an unbiased judge to have your injuries redressed."

Mulhern argues that the Bush administration is rigging the judicial system so it's harder for citizens to hold corporate culprits accountable on the full gamut of civil concerns - not just environment and public health, but also consumer protection, civil rights, and labor issues. "It's that sweeping," she said.

Howls of protest are being heard from environmental activists, labor and civil-rights groups, including the AFL-CIO and the NAACP, and a number of Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, including Sen. Richard Durbin (Ill.), who said during a hearing on the bill last week, "This isn't the Class Action Fairness Act - this is the Class Action Moratorium Act."

Class Action Moratorium




Please visit the link provided for the complete story.