Report Slams Tactics by Plaintiffs Lawyers in Asbestos Cases
A report released today by the Manhattan Institute’s Center for Legal Policy takes aim at a “business model” in asbestos cases that relies on “flimsy medical diagnoses” and seeks to overwhelm defendants and courts with mass claims.
“An epidemic of lawsuits, many riddled with fraudulent allegations, has distorted our economy while endangering relief for those who need it most,” says the report (PDF). “Ultimately, the attorneys bully besieged defendants into settlements that enrich Trial Lawyers Inc., while leaving genuinely injured claimants high and dry.”
Litigation has bankrupted 80 companies and cost $70 billion, with $40 billion of the amount going to lawyers’ fees and defense costs, the report says. It highlights two new developments: Mass screenings to recruit asbestos victims are being used again in Oklahoma. And in West Virginia, lawyers working for employees of CSX Transportation paid union officials to recruit victims.
The report says the asbestos “lawsuit assembly line” features six steps, reports the Madison-St. Clair Record:
Lawyer ads solicit plaintiffs.
Mass medical screenings are held to find potential clients.
Doctors rubber-stamp the diagnoses.
Plaintiffs lawyers bundle claims and file them in plaintiff-friendly environments.
Overwhelmed companies agree to settlements.
Lawyers earn big fees.
The report calls on courts to ensure that claims are legitimate and to scrutinize settlements. It also seeks legislative changes such as laws barring mass medical screenings, bars on forum-shopping, and the elimination of joint and several liability.
