MAJOR CHANGES TO FLORIDA TORT LAWS PROPOSED IN THE HOUSE
A day after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis vowed to end "a cottage industry of litigation", House leaders filed a major "tort reform" proposal.
HB 837 was filed on February 15 by House Judiciary Chair Tommy Gregory, R-Lakewood Ranch. Before reaching the House floor, the measure will stop at the Judiciary and the Civil Justice
Subcommittee.
At a Jacksonville press conference the day before, DeSantis said "You have a lot of use of the legal system that's been put toward not benefiting
someone in the system."
Florida's leading business groups responded to the press conference with a barrage of statements. Florida Chamber of Commerce President
and CEO Mark Wilson stated that "Florida's bottom-five legal climate is hurting local businesses."
Associated Industries of Florida CEO and President Brewster
Bevis exclaimed that "Florida's current tort climate is one of the top challenges facing businesses in every industry and every corner of our state."
In a press
release, DeSantis called for "eliminating one-way attorney fees and fee multipliers for all lines of insurance, modernizing Florida's 'bad faith' law, and protecting small business from paying exorbitant damages."
Michael Carlson, Personal Insurance Federation of Florida CEO called the bill "monumental." He said "This tort reform package is the most consequential in decades."
Curry Pajcic, President of the Florida Justice Association and Jacksonville Attorney called the proposal "an insurance company giveaway."
"The governor wants to make this a good business environment for everybody, and we agree with that," Pajcic said. "But this has gone way too far. It is terrifying the rights they are trying to take away."
Pajcic
suggests that severely injured patients could see their medical expenses capped at 140% of the Medicaid rate. Curry said "We are not going to let a jury decide the value of your medical bills, we, the government, will tell you the value of your medical bills."
Another provision could repeal the section of Florida law requires insurers to pay a policy holder's attorney fees and costs if a court determines the
company underpaid a claim or unfairly denied one.
