Frivolous but Deadly

Our citizens understand that frivolous law suits can drive companies not only out of state-- as is now happening with physicians-- but out of business. If bi-state businesses are wise, they will follow the lead of our physicians and demand real tort reform. They will insist on an environment in which the bullies and extortion artists who dwell within the deepest circles of legal hell will be run out of state on a rail.

In this issue, we dedicate a good deal of attention to the plight of Missouri's physicians in their quest to achieve tort reform.

In a larger sense, though, physicians are on the front line of a battle that all businesses face, especially the smaller ones. Indeed, there is not a business person in Kansas or Missouri, no matter how conscientious, who can open a letter from an unknown attorney with any emotion other than dread.

Guilt or innocence is rarely the issue. The issue is more likely to be the preservation of one's reputation and one's investment. A healthy percentage of plaintiff lawyers threaten both. All too often they know that if the threat seems real enough, and if the cost of defending against it high enough, they can secure a settlement regardless of the merits of the case.

Too many plaintiff lawyers have become bullies. Too many of them use the law not to seek justice but to seek submission, to bludgeon decent, conscientious people into acquiescence on any number of issues, many of them, if not most, devoid of substance.

Missouri and Kansas are not uniquely plagued by frivolous law suits. All states are. As we documented last year, South Texas has established a minority industry just in the suing of H&R Block.

Our states, however, are saner than most. Our citizens understand that frivolous law suits can drive companies not only out of state-- as is now happening with physicians--but out of business.

If bi-state businesses are wise, they will follow the lead of our physicians and demand real tort reform. They will insist on an environment in which the bullies and extortion artists who dwell within the deepest circles of legal hell will be run out of state on a rail.

It is a shame that businesses must endure the spurious risks of legal chicanery in addition to all the real risks they must run to survive. It is a shame that so many decent attorneys must have their reputations tainted by so few. If the attorneys would join other businesses and physicians in the fight, we could effectively modify legislation and eliminate the problem. Here's to a world without frivolous law suits,

Joe Sweeney, Editor-In-Chief & Publisher jsweeney@ingramsonline.com