NFIB State Director Brad Jones says a new report calling St. Louis an “Everlasting Judicial Hellhole” underscores the need for comprehensive legal reform in Missouri.
“Every jurisdiction in the state deserves courts that are fair and balanced and where judges don’t try to legislate from the bench,” Jones said.
The American Tort Reform Foundation this week published a list of “Everlasting Judicial Hellholes,” jurisdictions where it says civil courts consistently apply laws and court procedures in a way that’s unfair to defendants. In its criticism of the St. Louis courts, it cited a history of allowing junk science in the courts, venue shopping, abusive consumer class-action lawsuits, and excessive punitive damages among other issues.
“When the legislature returns to Jefferson City, we will fight for reforms that end the practice of judicial tourism in the St. Louis courts and creates a level playing field for defendants as well as plaintiffs,” Jones said.
Other jurisdictions on the tort reform foundation’s list of Everlasting Judicial Hellholes were Illinois, California, Louisiana, New York, Pennsylvania, and South Florida.
