Damage allocation laws pose threat to fairness; legislation to abolish joint-and-several liability may hurt both plaintiffs and defendants
Article Abstract:
Efforts to curtail or eliminate the common-law doctrine of joint and several liability would impose on plaintiffs the costs a given tortfeasor cannot pay, and they rely on mythical data. In very few instances have defendants only 1% responsible for a tort paid 100% of the damages, and the doctrine is rarely invoked in civil law. The allocation of fault indicates the share owed by one of several wrongdoers, each responsible for all the harm. The risk that one tortfeasor cannot pay its share rightly lies on the others.
Publication Name: The National Law Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0162-7325
Year: 1995
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Big shoulders; the state's top 10 litigators include heavy hitters for both plaintiffs and defendants
Article Abstract:
The Illinois Circuit Court of Cook County has instituted reforms whichh have proved successful to ease the court's backlog and allow it to better manage its docket. Examples are discussed and include dividing cases filed into subject areas and assigning them to the appropriate pretrial section, also a mediation program and a complex litigation section.
Publication Name: The National Law Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0162-7325
Year: 1999
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Plaintiffs and defendants may choose settlement to end court battles
Article Abstract:
Many large tort liability cases in 1991 were settled out of court as both plaintiffs and defendants sought to avoid further legal costs. The most significant examples of this trend are profiled, including a libel suit, a breach of contract claim, an environmental liability case and personal injury litigation.
Publication Name: The National Law Journal
Subject: Law
ISSN: 0162-7325
Year: 1992
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