Senate Turns its Attention to Tort Reform During 10th Week of Session

We spend a lot of time at the Capitol discussing how to best promote economic growth and development in the Show-Me State. A recurring theme within those discussions is how frivolous and unfounded civil lawsuits are two of the greatest impediments for growing a business and attracting new companies to Missouri.

For several years now, Missouri lawmakers have been diligently working to pass legislation that would put our state on the path toward a more sensible legal climate, while giving businesses and the health care community the confidence they need to invest in Missouri. I’m happy to say, on Thursday, the Senate third read and passed Senate Bill 239, tort reform legislation that would reinstate caps on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases.

A decade ago, the General Assembly passed legislation establishing a $350,000 cap on non-economic damages, which refers to compensation for pain and suffering. Unfortunately, in 2012, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled the cap unconstitutional, stating it violated the right to a trial by jury.

Since then, doctors in some specialties particularly, have seen their malpractice insurance rates double and even triple. Rates are rising because without caps, insurers have no measure of certainty with which to base their rates. It’s because of these high insurance rates that Missouri is now considered to be a “net exporter” of physicians. It’s bad enough we’re losing so many talented doctors to other states; it’s even worse this is only a taste of what could be coming down the pipeline.

SB 239 reinstates caps on non-economic damages at $400,000 for personal injury and $700,000 for catastrophic personal injury or death. To adjust for rising expenses, these limitations would increase by 1.7 percent each year. In addition, the measure includes a safeguard to help those individuals who have been most affected by medical negligence, by allowing a court to have the final say in the amount awarded in cases where a jury awards damages in excess of $400,000. SB 239 is a solid piece of legislation that will help bring a greater level of stability and certainty to insurers and physicians alike, while providing medical malpractice victims with meaningful, reasonable compensation.

Also this week, the Senate took up tort reform legislation I filed that discourages frivolous lawsuits and encourages cases to be settled without clogging up our courts. Senate Bill 37, a loser-pays bill, allows attorney’s fees to be recovered if a settlement offer is rejected and the judgment rendered is less than 75 percent of the settlement offer if a plaintiff rejects the offer or more than 125 percent if the defendant rejects the offer.

Here is a simplified example of how this would work. The defendant offers the plaintiff $100,000 to settle; the plaintiff rejects and takes the case to court. After the trial, the jury awards the plaintiff, $74,999.99 or less. Under the bill, the defendant would be awarded attorney’s fees. If the defendant rejected the plaintiff’s offer of $100,000 and the jury awards the plaintiff $125,000.01 or more, the plaintiff would be entitled to attorney’s fees. The offering party may only recover litigation costs incurred after the offer is rejected.

The measure also allows attorney’s fees to be award when a case is dismissed for the failure to state a claim, frivolous cases where the plaintiff failed to present sufficient facts to support their claim. I’ve been in business for 26 years, and I’ve had to weather several frivolous lawsuits during that time. And I can tell you it’s incredibly frustrating to be forced to waste your time and money on a lawsuit that has no merit, but is simply pursued to force a settlement. The fact is that Missouri would be much more appealing to the business community, if we had a more streamlined mechanism for disposing of these cases in the first place. This is exactly what SB 37 seeks to accomplish.

In other legislative news, on Wednesday, the Senate gave its initial approval to Senate Bill 224, legislation I filed requiring a student to be lawfully present in the United States in order to receive scholarships through the A+ Schools Program. This is a policy that already exists in Missouri’s other two scholarship programs: Access Missouri and Bright Flight.

Missouri’s A+ Program has been incredibly successful. So successful, in fact, that increased demand to take advantage of the program was a contributing factor in the recent budgetary shortfalls it experienced. The reality is our state has limited financial resources. We must first ensure our state’s programs are able to provide for the citizens who have grown up in our state, paid taxes in our state and are lawful residents of our state. Senate Bill 224 has received support from members on both sides of the aisle, and I look forward to seeing it passed by the Senate before making its way to the House for further consideration.

Finally, a number of visitors stopped by my office this week, including John Moore and John Cozean with the Missouri Funeral Directors and Embalmers Association; Connie Payne, Janet Horn, Vickie Revelle and Debbie Pryor with Disabled Citizens Alliance for Independence; Eileen Bauman with Citizens Electric Corporation; John Sebastian & Andy Kiepe were here to discuss soil and water issues; St. Francois County Circuit Court Clerk Vicki Weible; and Recorders of Deeds for St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve and Washington Counties: Steve Grider, Peggy Yamnitz and Judy Moyers, respectively.

Contact Me

I always appreciate hearing your comments, opinions and concerns. Please feel free to contact me in Jefferson City at (573) 751-4008. You may write me at Gary Romine, Missouri Senate, State Capitol, Jefferson City, MO 65101; or email me at gary.romine@senate.mo.gov; or www.senate.mo.gov/romine.

Sen. Romine’s Sponsored Legislation for 2015