Washington — Today, the trucking industry praised the West Virginia Senate for passing a commonsense reform to the state’s civil litigation system and urged the House of Delegates to approve it and send it to the governor’s desk.
The bill, which is scheduled to be marked up in committee tomorrow, would cap non-economic damage awards at $5 million. Capping subjective, nonmonetary losses is critical to ensuring fairness and balance in civil litigation and will deter abusive and frivolous lawsuits that have perverted the system into a profit center for the plaintiffs’ bar.
“When the plaintiffs’ bar perverts civil litigation into a casino game of ‘jackpot justice,’ the costs are borne by everyone—not just trucking companies, but consumers too in the form of higher insurance rates and higher prices for everyday goods,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “This reasonable reform ensures justice and fairness drive accident litigation outcomes, not profits.”
The legislation – S.B.583 – passed the West Virginia Senate by vote of 30-1 and is now under the consideration of the House Committee on the Judiciary.
“This legislation has broad support in the legislature and across the state,” said West Virginia Trucking Association President Traci Nelson. “West Virginia’s trucking industry is essential to everyone in our state, and rampant lawsuit abuse is impeding our ability to do our job safely and efficiently. We urge the House of Delegates to pass this bill so that it can be sent to Governor Justice to be signed into law.”
The trucking industry is a key provider of middle-class jobs in West Virginia, employing approximately 33,890 people throughout the state. Nearly 84 percent of West Virginia communities rely exclusively on trucks to receive their goods.