Posted on 02/02/2006 9:50:06 AM PST by TacoAvenger
According to Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, victim compensation depends directly on how much the companies contribute, and the fact that stock prices of asbestos firms have risen with each step in the legislative process of the bill is a clear indicator that the companies are the winners under the legislation. Seven asbestos firms will collectively benefit from an estimated 73.6 percent reduction in their liabilities – down from $18 billion to $4.7 billion – according to the group. W.R. Grace & Co., for example, would see an estimated 86.9 percent fall in liability from $3.2 billion to $418 million, and USG Corp would see an estimated 80.4 percent fall in liability from 4.1 billion to $797 million.
(Excerpt) Read more at citizen.org ...
The reason? CAGW donor and founding company R.W. Grace gets a multi-billion dollar bailout courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer.
Everything is for sale these days, even an otherwise good organization's principles. It's getting ugly down in D.C.
Public Citizen is a far-left Ralph Nader front which ultimately is a mouthpiece for trial lawyers.
Take this with a truck-load of salt.
Not surprised at all with this news.......figured out a long time back that CAGW was nothing more than "organized opposition" to give us the false impression there might be a group out there actually trying to hold the fedgov's feet to the fire.
Actually the real story is that the trial lawyers can't game the system anymore on this issue with junk science.
Oh, and "Welcome to FreeRepublic."
Interesting that you signed up today to post a press release from a left-wing advocacy group.
bttt
agreed.anything coming from PC is a steaming pantsload.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Tom Finnigan/Jessica Shoemaker
(202) 467-5309 / 467-5318
January 19, 2006Asbestos Reform Critical in Halting Fraudulent Lawsuits
(Washington, D.C.) - The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today encouraged Congress to pass S. 852, the Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act (FAIR Act). The legislation establishes a trust fund to reimburse true victims of asbestos exposure while limiting the actions of trial lawyers.
“The asbestos situation is a debacle viewed by trial lawyers a never ending revenue stream,” CCAGW President Tom Schatz said. “Millions of dollars are annually wasted on fraudulent suits, causing job loss and burdening taxpayers.”
More than 730,000 individuals have brought forward legal claims related to asbestos, with an estimated 300,000 claims currently pending. Studies have found that up to 90 percent of these claims were by people who have not suffered any physical impairment. The trust fund established by the FAIR Act would be funded by corporations and their insurers; no taxpayer or government funds would be involved.
The legal tactics employed by trial lawyers not only damage the legal system and those being sued; true victims of asbestos exposure are also suffering because of them. Because the court system is overwhelmed by asbestos lawsuits, some victims are dying of their asbestos-related health problems before they are compensated. When victims do receive compensation, their lawyers may take up to half of their judgment.
“Passage of the FAIR Act is vital both to true victims of asbestos exposure and to the industries entangled in litigation,” Schatz concluded.
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.
Unintended consequences is the lesson learned.
Public Citizen thinks that it lives in a static world where will intentioned government activity will always be well intentioned.
The reality is that the big government activists turn a small problem that could be fixed by the nuances of the invisible hand into a big problem created by the very visible and heavy hand.
The #1 trend is that only big business can deal with big government. Inherently, big government puts the little guy who can't hire lobbyists at a disadvantage.
True libertarianism is populism. Socialism is elitism.
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