Study: New York's Tort Liability System One of Worst

New York's tort liability system ranks 48th out of 50 states, making it one of the most inefficient systems, according to a study released by the Pacific Research Institute.

Tort systems are by-and-large governed on a state-by-state basis and typically deal with wrongful acts and breaches of contracts like medical malpractice or negligence.

The California-based think tank's "U.S. Tort Liability Index: 2006 Report" ranks states based on a number of factors, including their monetary tort losses, the effect of lawyers on the state's litigiousness, and whether the state caps its monetary payouts.

The study, labeled "a forward-looking assessment," takes into account recent changes to tort laws.

The report's co-author, Hovannes Abramyan, said New York's low ranking is not surprising given the absence of a state cap on payouts for medical malpractice, punitive damages, and noneconomic damages such as pain and suffering.

New York has "a system of justice that tolerates occasional wild verdicts of huge medical malpractice punitive damage claims … in a way that's demonstrably counterproductive to the well-being of the state as a whole," a chairman of the legal think tank Common Good, Philip Howard, said.

New York's high medical malpractice insurance payouts and its high number of attorneys put it in last place in those categories. The report has 39 variables and favors efficient states over New York, which "tends to have a label of being in the hands of the plaintiff attorneys," Mr. Abramyan said.

However, a New York State Trial Lawyers Association parliamentarian, Marc Dittenhoefer, said that New York's system is not excessively plaintiff-friendly and said its litigiousness is lower than it was 10 years ago. "New York didn't pass laws to give extra rights to sue. What other states have done is limit more and more the area in which certain lawsuits can be brought," Mr. Dittenhoefer said.

Mr. Dittenhoefer added, "I don't see any problem in letting a jury of your peers decide if your claim has merit," and noted that many of the seemingly excessive jury rewards are reduced by higher courts upon appeal.

Other lawyers disagreed with the study's findings and criticized its association with big business. "This is just another phony report bought and paid for by CEOs and big corporations intent on lining their pockets with no regard for its real world impact on people," the president of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Ken Suggs, said.

Texas was the study's top-ranked state,and the top 10 includes other conservative states such as Colorado, Utah, and Kansas. More liberal states such as New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont round out the bottom of the list.

New York's bright spots, according to the study, are sitting on the bench. Though New York's legislative system is plaintiff-friendly, the state's "responsible judiciary" serves as a check of sorts on the legislature, Mr. Howard said.