Tort

What is a Tort?

What Does Tort Really Mean?
Simply stated, tort lawsuits allow every-day Americans who have been harmed through no fault of their own to hold the person or company that caused their injuries accountable for their actions.

Who is Asking for So-called Tort “Reform”?
Through a well-funded and well organized public propaganda campaign, powerful insurance companies and corporations are distorting the true purpose of our civil justice system. Their goal is to persuade Congress to pass laws limiting the number of tort cases brought to court. These powerful special interests want to remove their victims’ access to the courtroom and limit the power of the jury, so they can not be held liable for their negligent actions. They know that a jury will deliberate the evidence in each case and fairly compensate a victim for their injuries, providing a level playing field for American citizens.

What Happens if the Legal System is “Reformed”?
If tort “reformers” had their way, the cases below might have never been heard by a jury. The courtroom doors would have been closed to them and thousands of future innocent victims.

FLAMMABLE CHILDREN'S PAJAMAS TAKEN OFF MARKET
A manufacturer of children's pajamas, made of 100 percent untreated cotton flannelette, stopped making the highly flammable garment after a Minnesota jury ordered the company to pay compensatory and punitive damages to a 4-year-old girl who had been badly burned when her pajama top caught fire.

PUBLIC NOTIFIED OF DEADLY CRIB DEFECT
In 1983, a 13-month-old baby was found hanged to death on the headboard of a crib made by Bassett Furniture. The girl's head was caught in a cut-out between the top corner post and a blanket roll, lifting her feet off the mattress. A jury awarded the girl's parents compensatory and punitive damages. Bassett had stopped producing the cribs, which were associated with the deaths of nine children, in 1977. However, the company did not adequately notify crib owners. It sent modification kits to stores rather than to consumers and refused a Consumer Product Safety Commission demand that it issue a national press release, for which it was fined. This verdict prompted the company to speed up the recall and public notice.

TYLENOL VERDICT PROMPTS WARNING LABELS
After a man's liver was destroyed by a toxic reaction when he took Tylenol and drank wine, the Food and Drug Administration announced that all pain relievers containing acetaminophen, including Tylenol, would bear warning labels. The man, who required an emergency liver transplant, was awarded compensatory and punitive damages by a jury. The FDA indicated it had been planning to require warnings before the verdict was rendered.

Don’t let powerful special interests take away your legal rights! Combat their attacks by educating Congress and the pubic on the true meaning of tort.

Don’t Let Them Put Profits Over People!