• 25
  • March
    2011

Several recent bills proposing a "loser-pays" tort system for Texas have stirred up quite a bit of debate recently. Texas Lawyer reports that, while there are some supporters of the bills, there are also many opponents on both the defense and plaintiff's side of the fence.

If made into law, the proposed bills would allow the winning party to recover attorneys' fees and litigation costs from the losing party in a number of types of civil cases, including medical malpractice.

The "loser-pays" bills were introduced on March 14 in both the House and Senate. All the proposed bills would, apparently, apply to most civil litigation cases. Two of the bills would have the losing party pay for attorney fees and litigation costs.

In the other one, the losing lawyer would have to pay.

The two bills which are most likely to gain the most support are Senate Bill 13 and House Bill 274. Both bills are supported by Governor Rick Perry, who has made tort reform an important part of his legislative agenda.

Senate Bill 13, which is sponsored by Senator Joan Huffman, would allow the winning party to recover attorneys' fees for a number of types of cases. The bill also proposes a requirement that the winning plaintiff pay litigation costs to a defendant who offers to settle in certain circumstances

House Bill 274, which is sponsored by Representative Brandon Creighton, proposes that the attorney of the losing party pay the litigation costs if the judge finds he has a financial interest in the case and the jury finds that he has filed a suit which is abusive of the civil justice process.

Supporters of the bills feel they will help curb the problem of frivolous lawsuits, which are hard on businesses. They feel a loser-pays system will expedite claims, decrease "junk lawsuits," and create economic opportunity by relieving businesses of the costs of frivolous lawsuits.

But opponents of the bills feel that they will make it more difficult for plaintiffs to bring legitimate claims, and that the loser-pays system will eventually make the civil justice system too one-sided. Some point to the fact that Florida once had a loser-pays system, but since repealed that law. Among the opponents of the bill is the Texas Association of Defense Counsel.

In our next post, we'll continue looking at this issue.

Source: Texas Lawyer, "Defense and Plaintiffs Attorneys Riled Up Over Tort Reform Bills," 21 Mar 2011.