Tort Reform has been made a
phoney political issue with all types of alleged complexities.
Really, the issue is quite simple. Who pays for the
victim's loss- the victim or the wrongdoer?
I believe the "those who break must pay."
We should not blame the victim and permit the wrongdoer to get
off free. That is like saying, in a criminal context, we should put
the raped woman in jail rather than the rapist.
Taking away the victim's right to fully
recover from the wrongdoer means the wrongdoer can keep attacking
more victims with impunity. Even though money can never replace many
injuries, it is the only standard we have to balance the
What is a Tort? A tort is a civil
wrong, whether intentionally, by mistake, or by accident where one
party wrongfully injures another. An example of a tort is where a
motorist drives through a red light and hits into a child crossing
the street, breaking her leg. This is compared to a
contract issue where one person agrees to pay the other person
$100 for plumbing work, the work is performed, and the person
refuses to pay. Our society, as a means of avoiding violence and
vigilantism, has established a justice system where the victims of
both tort wrongs and contract wrongs can legally recover. See the Cornell Legal Information Institute for more
information about tort law
What is so-called "Tort Reform"? The
tort reform movement is a political action to change the current
system shifting the burden of the wrongdoer's actions to the victim.
In other words, it is another attempt at blame the victim and
allowing the wrongdoer to avoid individual responsibility. See
further links to
Reform Disinformation and Detailed Explanations