Viewpoint: Toxic torts — Taxpayers each pay over $1000 a year to subsidize ambulance-chasing lawyers targeting agriculture products

While the massive advertising and public relations campaigns may paint a picture of a white knight helping those in need, the reality is often quite different. Credit: Pix4Free
While the massive advertising and public relations campaigns may paint a picture of a white knight helping those in need, the reality is often quite different. Credit: Pix4Free

We’ve all seen the ads, declaring that we or a loved one may be entitled to financial compensation, soliciting claims alleging that various products are responsible for medical conditions that either have a range of potential causes or an entirely unkown cause.

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Since plaintiffs’ lawyers have earned billions of dollars on the handful of Roundup® claims that have gone to trial, showing a good return on their advertising investment, they’ve now started their latest ad campaign for claims involving paraquat.

The trial lawyers’ playbook is chock full of clever maneuvers to create more business for themselves, but they can’t do it alone. Third-party investors provide the necessary money upfront to initiate these tactics. Hedge funds, institutional investors, and public and private companies have poured billions of dollars into funding litigation.

We all pay the price in higher costs on goods and services. Research shows that lawsuit abuse across the U.S. results in nearly $285 billion in excessive tort costs, meaning every American pays approximately $1,303 each year in a “tort tax.” Excessive tort costs affect 4,244,960 jobs across the country, with an estimated loss of $143.8 million in wages.

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