What does this chart show?
Tort costs (the aggregate amount of judgments, settlements, and legal costs to adjudicate private claims and enforcement actions) grew 7.1% per year from 2016 to 2022 — exceeding the annual rate of inflation and GDP.
Why does it matter?
Costs and compensation paid in the U.S. tort system reached $529 billion in 2022, amounting to $4,200 per household and 2.1% of US GDP. It’s estimated that tort costs in the U.S. decrease our manufacturing cost competitiveness by 3.7% relative to our top nine trading partners and adversely impacts our worker productivity.
Significant disparities in tort costs exist between states. Florida and Deleware have the highest costs whereas West Virginia and Maine have the lowest. Common sense legislative reforms to decrease misleading lawsuit advertising and predatory lawsuit lending helped West Virginia decrease tort costs by 20% over the period studied to the lowest level nationally at $2,132 per household.
The Bottom Line
Tort costs represent sand in the gears of the U.S. economy and can be addressed through common sense legislative reform.
Chart and Data Sources - Tort Costs in America: An Empirical Analysis of Costs and Compensation of the U.S. Tort System
Jack
Could not agree more but doesn't really address why. But as someone who wants to have clients its not smart to alienate one group over another. Go no further than the American Bar Assoc which leans Left. I understand completely supporting whoever puts food on your plate or butters your toast. But until everyone starts to really understand the realities of exactly what money is and the connection between capital formation and money in your pocket. And we stop looking at lawsuits as winners in a lottery and realize those lawsuits cost all of us money.
I remember Marilynne being on a jury and deciding whether to reward someone who was shown rollerblading and not really injured at all. Several other jurors commented to her basically saying to her " why are you being such a hardass its only the insurance companies money. I was proud of her telling these people "oh really and where does the insurance company get it's money.
Ken