Benched: The Corporate Takeover of the Judiciary...



I stopped in at the Siskel to check out the documentary "Benched: The Corporate Takeover of the Judiciary" which took a look at the role of corporate america in tort reform and in how that manifested itself in a political race of the Illinois State Supreme Court in 2004.

The interesting things about this documentary were:
  • Non-related advertising. Corporate (Big Tobacco) money went towards tort "reform" through a number of "fronts"
  • Scare Tactics in Small Town America. The idea that doctors are leaving small town america because of rising insurance costs AND that capping lawsuits will result in these same doctors deciding to stay is certainly a tenuous argument
  • Insurance rates and Litigation threats aren't directly linked. Data from states that regulate both insurance rates and cap awards show that insurers continue to demand higher rates regardless of the caps
  • Perception vs. Reality. For all the media attention to the occasional non-sense lawsuit that nets someone a lottery jackpot, which tort reform is trying to stop, how many cases of permanent injury (brain damage, paralysis, etcetera) would these caps effect? You'd think that's a simple case of running the numbers....
  • Juries are important. The documenter made one fabulous point about the importance of the american jury system as a control on the special interests. It's waning as a control as all the relevant issues are increasingly politicized, but it still maintains some semblance of a check against corporate power and (generally) supports victims
  • The candidate for a spot on the Illinois Supreme Court whose candidacy was supported deeply by the tort "reform" industry won and casted the tie breaking vote on an appeal that had been ruled against big tobacco for 10.4 billion dollars.

    • The reader capsule is entirely right on this film. Fantastic issues, amateurish documentary.

    Posted: Tue - January 31, 2006 at 10:00 AM      

    ©