The Orange County Register concurs that lawsuits take a toll on cities and counties.

The editorial noted:

"California's largest cities and counties are facing tremendous budgetary issues, yet one cost that too often goes largely unnoticed is that paid out in verdicts, settlements and for outside legal counsel.

"A study conducted by California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse found that eight of the largest cities and nine of the largest counties in California spent $504.1 million to deal with lawsuits over fiscal 2007 and 2008."

And concluded with this final thought:

"CALA has been a reliable advocate for changing laws in ways that sensibly limit the kind of lawsuits that can be filed and the level of damages sought. The costs related in the group's latest study show the reason why."