For the past four years, Louisiana has been ranked a “judicial hellhole” by the American Tort Reform Association, and 2017-2018 is unfortunately no different. Since 2002, ATRA has identified and ranked the localities in the U.S. where it feels judges consistently apply laws and court procedures unfairly and in an unbalanced way that disadvantages defendants.
“The Pelican State’s legal climate has suffered for decades at the hands of powerful trial attorneys and the politicians they control,” the ATRA report says. “Plaintiff-friendly courts, excessive jury verdicts, problematic venue laws, widespread judicial misconduct, a lack of transparency in asbestos litigation and trust claims, disability-access lawsuits targeting small businesses, broad misuse of consumer protection laws, and the highest jury-trial threshold in the nation are all problems that contribute to the state’s longstanding reputation as one of the worst places in the country to be sued.”
The biggest problems, ATRA notes, are a rise in meritless lawsuits as a result of the growing ‘litigation industry,’ runaway Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits against small businesses, and widespread judicial corruption.
To read the full report, visit http://www.judicialhellholes.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/judicial-hellholes-report-2017-2018.pdf.
