Tort Crisis Overblown, Tillinghast Studies Faulty, Claims Think Tank

May 17, 2005

  • May 18, 2005 at 8:23 am
    Natty Bumppo says:
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    Never mind WHY the EPI was founded. Look WHO founded it. Any outfit with founders like Robert Kuttner, editor of The American Prospect, and Robert (“Keep it Short”) Reich, former U.S. secretary of labor under Clinton, sure ain’t my idea of objective and non-biased! :-/ Natty B.

  • May 18, 2005 at 1:24 am
    Jeff Erickson says:
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    I was surprised by the conclusion of this allegedly non-partisan group. When I checked into the further I found the Board of Directors composed almost entirely of heads of unions….

  • May 18, 2005 at 1:40 am
    Scott says:
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    I wonder why they didn’t include data from the other 15 states? Is it possible, had it been included, the results would have been different?

  • May 18, 2005 at 1:53 am
    Jack says:
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    Thiis may be a biased opinion. The facts on a simple HO claim is that the insurance company spent $150,000 to put $50,000 in the damaged party’s hands… each attorney got $50,000, too. A client just won a four year lawsuit and was awarded $35,000 plus the defendent paid the attorney bills for both sides of over $700,000. The legal system has NO impact my behind…

  • May 18, 2005 at 2:49 am
    Ron says:
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    It is widely rumored (& documented) that the cost of a claim triples when an attorney is involved. Jack’s comment support’s this, too. Maybe they need to “tank” the Think Tank!!

  • May 18, 2005 at 3:07 am
    chuck says:
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    We have vast experience here in NYC over the past 15 years. The system is completely out of control. The cost of defense is so high that insurance carriers routinely settle personal injury/slip/trip and fall cases for hundreds of thousands that have little or no merit, but which will obviously drag on for years with legal fees mounting.

    The Judges in New York State courts are under pressure to move civil cases and the way to move them is to push for money settlements regardless of the facts.

    It is a system that keeps the lawyers on both sides fully occupied, and is a drain on the whole economic system.

    Idiotic standards are created to head off law suits. A good example is a $8.00, 2 foot circular pink plastic blow up tube for a kiddie pool with a tiny pink blow up umbrella attached which is emblazened with the statement “Not meant as a Life Saving Device”.We all see such examples daily.

    My favorite cartoon depicts an attorney at a firm interviewing a prospective lawyer and stating “This firm has a long history of bringing gravitas to frivolous lawsuits”. This pretty much says it all.

  • May 18, 2005 at 3:28 am
    Knows Better says:
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    Actually, if you watch what company’s reserve on losses and later, what the actual expense and amounts paid are, I think you will see there is great merit in what is said here.

    Too many people know so little about reserves etc. And it is TOO TOO BAD!!!

  • May 18, 2005 at 3:32 am
    Don P says:
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    Contrary to what one message here says, these do not appear to be union-oriented, but minimum wage/living wage-oriented. There is a significant difference. I found the EPI mission statement on-line at http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/about and it does appear to be study of the impacts of policy decisions on low-middle income wage earners. While they do bring a clear bias to the argument, their findings beg for additional research on the subject. As one who studied in college the comparative impact of social and governmental structures on industrial development, I am not surprised that different parts of the country see the TTP conclusions in their own light. I think a comparison of regions with different litigation climates would be the next step.

  • May 18, 2005 at 3:42 am
    Just Wait says:
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    When your surgeon comes in early while you are asleep to check your surgery site (to avoid your family & any discussions)after just shaking hands with the infectious disease doctor who just put in an order to put your roomate in isolation…

    Wonder how you will feel when your non economic damages are capped? (Who knows what horrible infection(s) you may have been exposed to…. many of these incidents are unreported…

    If you could even ever figure it out

  • May 18, 2005 at 4:18 am
    Dirty handed docter says:
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    oh, I understand; it’s surgery for morons. Too bad they can’t be removed.



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