Trial lawyers in Louisiana spent more than $8.5 million between 2008 and 2014 on campaign contributions and lobbying expenditures, an unprecedented level of spending that is thwarting judicial reform and harming the state’s legal and economic climate.
That’s the takeaway from “The Trial Lawyer Money Trail,” a report released this morning by the grassroots group Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse Watch, which tries to raise awareness about lawsuit abuse and promotes tort reform.
“A small cadre of trial lawyers, who, enriched by massive court settlements, have unleashed a coordinated flood of campaign contributions on elected officials,” the report reads. “The most significant efforts to bring fairness to the state’s courts remain stalled in Baton Rouge … and after decades of effort, Louisiana still ranks among the worst legal climates in the country.”
The report notes the Center for Public Integrity gave Louisiana an F for judicial accountability, while the American Tort Reform Association has singled out Louisiana as a “judicial hellhole” for the past five years.
Among the key findings in the report:
- Trial lawyer donations to the Legislature have quadrupled since 2008. Just 25 plaintiffs’ law firms gave nearly $1.2 million to Louisiana legislators over a seven-year period
- The $8.5 million the plaintiffs’ bar spent in campaign contributions and lobbying efforts in Louisiana includes nearly $2.7 million in contributions to state legislators, $524,000 in contributions to statewide elected officials, $955,000 in contributions to state political parties, $3.5 million in lobbying expenditures and $960,000 on political action committees
- At $2.9 million, trial lawyer spending between 2009 and 2012 topped that of any other special interest group. The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry spent nearly $2.3 million, while engineering and construction firms spent $1.85 million and unions spent $1.6 million
- The top five firms contributing to state lawmakers between 2009 and 2012 were: Talbot Carmouche & Marcello; Herman, Katz & Cotlar; Glenn Armentor; The August Group; and Cossich, Sumich, Parsiola & Taylor. Only Talbot, Carmouche & Marcello is from the Baton Rouge area.
Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse says it hopes the report will help raise awareness about what it calls the growing influence of trial attorneys on Louisiana’s political system.
“This powerful special interest group is expending unprecedented resources to support candidates and legislation to expand the boundaries of civil liability in Louisiana,” the report concludes.
—Stephanie Riegel
