How do Democrats and Republicans stand on tort reform issues?
“Tort Reform” is a very partisan issue. At both the state and national levels, Republicans overwhelmingly support tort reform and Democrats oppose it. The trial lawyer associations which represent plaintiff lawyers are major contributors to the Democrats. Insurance and medical interests contribute heavily to Republicans. In fact, the tort reform debate can be considered as an aspect of the overall political dynamic involving distribution of the nation’s wealth. The most contentious issues involve medical malpractice and product liability. The result of settlements and verdicts of these cases is a transfer of wealth from groups which tend to be wealthy to victims and their lawyers. Virtually all the reform proposals ultimately attempt to limit the amount of funds which are distributed in this fashion.
