By J. Lyn Carl, GalleryWatch.com
Austin, TX –
Calling his legislation "rational, logical and good medicine - not hype," Sen. Kyle Janek (R-Houston) was joined today by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to announce the filing of SB 15, aimed at assisting real victims of asbestos and silica exposure while reducing frivolous, baseless asbestos-related lawsuits.
Noting that tort reform was one of the major issues faced by the 78th Legislature, Dewhurst said most of the focus then was on medical malpractice. Today, however, Texas has found out what he said many other states have already determined - that frivolous lawsuits are "wreaking havoc" on the economy.
He said last session's medical malpractice tort reform has led to lower premiums for physicians, and some are returning to their areas of specialty. He cited a Wall Street Journal article that notes, "Texas is a good news story" relative to tort reform.
However, he said the increasing number of "baseless" asbestos claims flooding into Texas courtrooms continues. "Our work is not done," in tort reform he said, saying the "true victims" of asbestos exposure may not receive the damages they deserve. Many of the people in courtrooms with asbestos claims "are not sick," he said.
"A chapter is yet to be written in our good news story," said the lieutenant governor. "The system doesn't work" for those who have legitimate claims, he said.
"The tentacles of asbestos litigation...have clawed their way very deep into Texas," said Dewhurst, at some of the highest rates in the country. He said some attorneys are "looking to get rich" and are leading "hordes of people" into the courtrooms to claim damages for illnesses "that may or may not materialize."
Some of these people have been exposed, he said, but are not sick and some individuals who truly are ill are prevented by the system from "receiving the compensation they deserve."
Saying his priority and the priority of the state should be the injured worker, Dewhurst agreed with Janek who said the bill is "fair and compassionate" and a bill that "focuses on the injured worker." Passage of SB 15, said Dewhurst, will ensure that Texas does "what's right for the injured workers and what's fair for our Texas employers." He said Texas has an opportunity to set the tone for the nation with a "model piece of legislation" that will help injured workers in asbestos and silica lawsuits.
Janek said real progress has been made on this issue since last session. He said the current bills tries to lay out "solid, objective medical criteria to judge if someone has been impaired" by exposure to asbestos. He said those who have truly been hurt by such exposure "have nothing to worry about from this legislation" and that future rights of individuals who have been exposed to asbestos or silica also will be protected.
At the heart of the legislation, said Janek, is a definition of "impairment," with the criteria "carefully vetted by the American Bar Association and other states and other court jurisdictions." He said the legislation he is filing is "good," but added, "We're not through."
In the last legislative session, Janek admitted he compromised on some things in his bill, but he and Dewhurst added that they are confident of enough votes to pass the bill out of the Senate. "Our goal is to make sure injured workers are able to recover a fair compensation," said Dewhurst, pledging to make passage of the bill a priority.