Editorial: Can We Escape Our 'Tort Hell'?

The State Journal,  June 8, 2006

West Virginia cannot fulfill its economic promise if the rest of the world sees it as a place that tolerates abusive lawsuits.

CSX Transportation has taken legal action that likely brings joy to the boardrooms of corporations that have been stung by lawsuits that seemed lost the day they were filed in West Virginia courts.

The State Journal's Beth Gorczyca reported last week the railroad company sued a Pittsburgh law firm in federal court, alleging that one of the firm's employees conspired to help two CSX workers falsify asbestos screenings so they could get a cut of the litigation pie. CSX filed the suit after it initially settled with the employees and wrote them checks.

At the same time, questions are arising about a Bridgeport physician's X-ray diagnoses that have helped plaintiffs' lawyers win settlements in cases involving asbestos and silica exposure. No one can predict the outcome of that saga.

Let's put this in context: West Virginia has served as the home field for plaintiffs' attorneys determined to bring corporations to their knees. In the process, West Virginia developed a reputation as "tort hell." That status -- a distinction the trial bar argues is contrived and unwarranted -- has placed a pall on the Mountain State 's business reputation. That's not helpful for a state that aspires to be open for business.

The CSX case must take its course. We cannot predict the outcome, and we certainly do not believe a single corporation's aggressive response can eliminate our "tort hell" reputation. But we can predict this: West Virginia cannot fulfill its economic promise if the rest of the world sees it as a place that tolerates abusive lawsuits. That's a certainty.

Companies that injure employees or the public through negligence or irresponsible and intentional acts should expect to make restitution. Companies that conduct business in a prudent fashion should not live in fear of litigation. That's been the problem in West Virginia .

Our courts are available to citizens who have suffered real injuries. But too many lawyers use the threat of litigation as leverage to pry cash out of companies. Some firms' cases may have been based on fabricated evidence. Some judges seem reluctant to throw out even the most flimsy cases. Lawsuits become settlements. Plaintiffs get their cut. Lawyers get their cut. And West Virginia loses.

This has to change.