California has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation, and businesses are constantly leaving for other states. One reason for this is California’s “sue first, ask questions later” environment, which has California’s legal climate to be consistently ranked among the worst in the nation. In fact, California has been ranked the nation’s worst “Judicial Hellhole” for two years in a row.
We witness unscrupulous attorneys and plaintiffs treat public entities such as cities, counties, schools, and prisons as a piggy bank, using abusive lawsuits to seek a quick payday. These lawsuits require taxpayer dollars to pay litigation costs such as verdicts, settlements and outside counsel.
For our state to get back on track, we have to focus on creating jobs, not lawsuits. Every dollar a small business in California spends on a lawsuit is a dollar that can’t be spent on expanding the business or hiring new workers. Lawsuit abuse is holding back our state’s economic growth, and it has to stop.