Editor’s Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Tom Scott, Executive Director of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

While there are a lot of reasons California has been the #1 Judicial Hellhole for two years running, how we deal with employment lawsuits is one reason we will probably stay at the top of the list for a third straight year.

Editor’s Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Tom Scott, Executive Director of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, providing two-thirds of all new jobs. But lawsuit abuse threatens small businesses, hurting their ability to grow and create jobs that we all need. 

That’s why a thriving economy and legal reform go hand in hand – as such, we’re hardly surprised that the Florida Chamber of Commerce identified legal reform as the number one priority for 2014, saying that lawsuit abuse is one of the chief obstacles in preventing small businesses from succeeding. 

Editor’s Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Tom Scott, Executive Director of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

On September 11th, the California state Senate sent AB 227 by Assemblyman Mike Gatto with a vote of 78-0, and the bill is now on its way to Governor Brown for a veto or signature. Gov. Brown likely will sign it because it has received bipartisan support from a broad coalition of trial lawyers, environmentalists and business. 

Tort reformers have been turning up all over the internet recently. We took the liberty of rounding up some of the standouts. You may recognize a few friends of Project Lawsuit Abuse in there. Here are some of the newsmakers from around the country.

Recently, we told you about Sick of Lawsuits’ Small Business Summer, which we launched to draw attention to the negative impact of lawsuit abuse on small businesses and ensure that the voices of small business owners are heard. As part of these efforts, Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse groups around the country have been holding all sorts of rallies, roundtable discussions and forums to spread the word. 

Check out some of the highlights below!

If you’ve been keeping up on lawsuit abuse issues in California, you probably know all about the problems surrounding Proposition 65. The law requires that businesses post visible warning labels to alert consumers to the presence of potentially dangerous chemical in their products or on their properties. Sounds like a good idea right? Well, the problem is that the law, as written, allows for shakedown lawsuits against small businesses by a few unscrupulous trial lawyers.

Tort reformers have been turning up all over the internet recently. We took the liberty of rounding up some of the standouts. You may recognize a few friends of Project Lawsuit Abuse in there. Here are some of the newsmakers from around the country. – Project Lawsuit Abuse

Patent litigation surge against small businesses shows need for reform

Editor’s Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Tom Scott, Executive Director of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

Recently, the American Association of Justice (AAJ), the national association of plaintiff’s lawyers, held its annual national convention in San Francisco. Unfortunately, these lawyers weren’t interested in growing our economy or creating jobs. With several of their sessions focused on lawsuit creation, it’s obvious they’re interested in just one thing: lining their own pockets by manipulating laws to further incentivize litigation from which they profit.

At Project Lawsuit Abuse, we frequently talk about the benefits that tort reform has brought to Texas, but today we have another example of proof.

To mark almost ten years after Texas passed its expansive tort reform measures, the Heritage Foundation’s Texas Public Policy Foundation reviewed the impacts that these reforms have had on both jobs and health care in the state.  Both cases mark record success. 

Editor’s Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Travis Akin, Executive Director of Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

Small business owners face many challenges – especially here in Illinois where businesses have to deal with onerous regulations, high taxes and fees and a culture of lawsuit abuse.

For example, an owner of a small grocery store told me he often thinks about leaving Illinois and opening up a store in a more business-friendly environment. He said every year his business is the target of litigation.