Special to The Japan Times
It is increasingly difficult to tell justice and politics apart in America. Trial attorneys contribute to politicians who make plaintiff-friendly laws. Beneficiaries of the resulting lawsuits contribute to the same politicians. Then the trial bar finances the campaigns of plaintiff-friendly judges, whose judgments underwrite the next round of political contributions.
More worrisome are contributions from attorneys designed to ensure friendly courts. Consider the case of Ohio. Earlier this year, a 4-3 majority of the Ohio Supreme Court tossed out a three-year-old tort-reform package. According to an analysis by the Ohio Citizens against Lawsuit Abuse, since 1992 the four justices in the majority have received $1,528,054 from trial attorneys. The three dissenting justices collected only $70,704 from the trial bar.