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Lawsuit Happy Climate Needs Fix

David Houston, CALA Co-Chair's commentary "Lawsuit Happy Climate Needs Fix" was recently published in the Los Angeles Daily News. Here is what he had to say:

Vexatious litigants often target small businesses where the cost of a legal defense far exceeds the cost of a settlement. At least one judge has called such actions a "racket." These suits are generally based on technical violations where there is little evidence of any harm, and no one is hurt.

When there are no court challenges from defendants, vexatious plaintiffs are free to file dozens of cases every day without ever having to prove actual injuries or go before a court. Sadly, such settlements mean that many actual violations go uncorrected, allowing repeat vexatious litigants to go from one target to the next without ever being challenged and without actually improving anything except their own personal fortunes.

Current law allows a judge to label somebody a vexatious litigant if the person is representing himself. We must close this loophole to allow judges to designate vexatious litigants even if they are represented by an attorney. Then, they would have to ask the court for special permission before filing more lawsuits.

Legal reforms such as curbing vexatious litigants can be a spark that helps drive California's economic recovery forward. We need more jobs, not more lawsuits.

You can read the entire article by clicking here.

Listen to Business Leaders

Tom Scott, Executive Director of California CALA, wrote a letter to the editor to the Sacramento Bee in which he calls for California to pay more attention to what its business leaders are saying about its business climate. Here is what he had to say:

"Anytime you see a CEO of a large company come forward and say there is something wrong with your state, people should listen. Andrew Puzder should be applauded for stepping up and making people realize that regulatory and legal reform are critical to California's future. If you have to spend $20 million fighting trial lawyers, that is $20 million that is not creating jobs and building a business.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry warned California two years ago that it had to tackle big issues like taxes, regulations, education and legal reform if it was going to be able to compete. Since then, we are batting 0 for 4."

Click here to see the letter at the Sacramento Bee website.

California Is Regulating Itself Out of Business

Nathan Mintz, a member of the California CALA leadership team, wrote an article for the Torrance Daily Breeze in which he calls attention to the abuse of the legal system made possible by California's regulations. Here is what he had to say:

"A regulation that clearly flunks that test is Proposition 65, which requires warning signs be posted everywhere that say, "This facility contains chemicals known by the state of California ." These signs are now so widespread they are completely ignored by the public, but their absence can lead to a useless lawsuit that can be crippling to business owners. Trial lawyers are making tens of millions off these frivolous lawsuits - they have even set up a Web community, prop65clearinghouse.com to share the tools of the trade. In 2009, they clogged up our courts with 321 of these lawsuits, costing us millions to hear and rule on these cases, with virtually no benefit for the general public beyond the postage of more of these signs. Rolling back the broad definition of this regulation would save taxpayers millions and save hundreds of businesses from more legal headaches."

Click here to read the entire article.

Los Angeles Times: Wal-Mart sex-bias case splits high court

CALA supporter Robert Donin's letter to the editor in response to the "Wal-Mart sex-bias case splits high court" article was published in the LA Times. Here is what he had to say:

"Let's hope the Supreme Court says no to this obvious abuse of the legal system. As The Times noted in a previous article, 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge Alex Kozinski in his dissenting comment said the workers of this supposed class action "have little in common but their sex and this lawsuit."

Click here to read the entire letter.

Newport Independent: These Suits Don't Fit

Longtime CALA supporter Dr. Michael Arnold Glueck's commentary, "These Suits Don't Fit" was published in the Newport Beach Independent.

Here is what he had to say:

"At every turn, California chooses to create lawsuits that hurt job and business growth.

With the second highest unemployment rate in the nation – reported at 12.3% but in truth probably much more – and double-digit unemployment projected through at least 2013, California is in desperate need of jobs.

Despite this, our leaders in the Legislature, courts, and government offices consistently support policies that hurt job creation and business growth by encouraging lawsuits against businesses. With more than 1 million lawsuits filed every year, California is one of the most litigious states in the country."

Read the complete commentary here.

LTE: Curb Pricey Lawsuits

Three southern California daily newspapers published CALA supporter Ron Nuckles' commentary favoring Assemblyman Nestande's bill, AB 271, to give defendants in a class action lawsuit the same opportunity as plaintiffs to appeal a judge's decision to move a class action lawsuit forward. He said:

"Hats off to Assemblyman Brian Nestande for introducing AB 271 regarding class-action lawsuits. It's about time that we implement common-sense reforms to make California competitive with other states and to protect and create jobs."

You can read the commentary in the San Bernardino Sun, the Press Enterprise or the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.

Orange County Register: Wacky Class Action Lawsuits

The Orange County Register published a letter-to-the-editor by Maryann Marino on wacky class action lawsuits. Marino said:

"For our economy to grow, O.C. business owners must know that they can operate in a state that strongly protects them from “Judicial Hellhole” lawsuits waged solely for the profit of those who file them. When our local businesses are forced to address a high number of “wacky consumer class-actions,” we all lose."