Southern California Regional Director Maryann Maloney's community commentary was published in the Daily Pilot today, in which she applauded Assemblyman Van Tran for addressing a problem caused by overexuberance of the class action plaintiff's bar through his bill AB 298:

"This bill will be fought vigorously by plaintiffs’ attorneys. All they have to do in California’s current climate is pick a business to sue, regardless of whether any wrongdoing has occurred, and wait for the millions of dollars in settlement fees. The abuse of the civil justice system is a continuing problem. California ranked 44th in a recent Harris Poll compiling perceptions of courts, judges, juries, processes and the treatment of tort and contract litigation and class action lawsuits within each state. Orange County was recently named a place to watch in the American Tort Reform Assn.’s annual Judicial Hellhole report, citing class action lawsuits against Botox in particular.

We must encourage our legislators to pass bills that will stimulate economic recovery, keep businesses open and prices low. AB 298 is a bill that will accomplish all these things."

The San Diego Union Tribune editorialized today in support of Assemblyman Van Tran's AB 298, a bill that CALA supports. In the editorial, the UT writes:

"Now another trial lawyer scam involving class-action lawsuits may find the spotlight, thanks to legislation introduced by Assemblyman Van Tran, R-Costa Mesa. For years, trial lawyers have settled these suits with deals in which they get millions in legal fees but aggrieved consumers are only given coupons toward purchases from the companies that did them wrong in the first place – coupons that are almost never used.

"This has led to such assaults on common sense as owners of Ford Explorers with an alleged propensity to roll over being given a certificate that allows them to receive $500 off the purchase or lease of a new Explorer – in other words, a discount on the inflated-to-the-point-of-meaningless Manufacturer's Recommended Selling Price. The San Francisco law firm that brought the class-action suit, meanwhile, presented the court with a $25 million bill for its work.

"Where did the $25 million sum come from? According to the Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, the contingency fee of the suing law firm is “generally based on the full value of the coupon to every class member.” Given that just 2 percent of coupons are ever redeemed, this is preposterous."

In today's Flash Report, read about CALA Chairman John Merchant and NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck's take on what voters were not voting for during last November's election:

"An Associated Press national poll taken on inauguration day indicates that 53 percent of Americans feel optimistic. Yet at this time of hope and optimism, California is on the brink of insolvency. In the face of such a paradox, Californian’s need to be more vigilant than ever about the efforts of the trial bar that undoubtedly will result in more businesses closing their doors, leaving the state and adding to the millions of jobless Californians.  That kind of change is one we simply can’t shoulder."

Today's San Diego Business Journal published an opinion-editorial from CALA Chairman John Merchant and NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck in which they note:

"Every year since, they have succeeded in getting a pliable Legislature to put some bill or another on the governor’s desk that would open up new revenue streams for them at the expense of business owners."

CALA Chairman John Merchant and NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck published an opinion-editorial in the Weekly Calistogan. In it, they wrote:

"Whatever change voters were seeking last November, there is no record of any mass of them calling for greater rights for lawyers to sue. Sensing a new political mood afoot in the nation, however, personal injury attorneys are girding their loins for another charge at changing state laws to enrich themselves through artificially aggrieved clients and billable hours — and nowhere is that more evident than in California."

In an article on San Diego News Room today, Gina Giacopuzzi reports on the impact of abusive lawsuits on California's economy. In it, San Diego Regional Director Lorie Zapf notes:

"People find it a lottery; they think big companies are deep pockets," said Lorie Zapf, president of San Diego Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse (CALA). "But in California, up to 90 percent of companies have 15 or fewer employees. When they hurt these companies, they're hurting the economy."

When businesses have to deal with litigation, "(they) have to cut back on employee benefits, marketing, advertising... lawsuits can destroy them," said Zapf. "The ‘golden' state of California is already considered one of the worst states in terms of its business climate, ranking 44 out of 50 states in the ‘Lawsuit Climate 2008' Harris Survey.  It's also in the bottom ten on the Forbes ‘10 Worst States to do Business' list, ranking #50 in when it comes to business costs (which include litigation).  That's dead last."