From the Post-Dispatch

Report rips Madison County as top "judicial hellhole"
By Paul Hampel
Post-Dispatch
11/05/2003
The Washington-based American Tort Reform Association puts Madison County's court system in its bull's-eye in a report to be released today, calling the county the worst in the nation when it comes to giving defendants in lawsuits a fair shake.
The association ranked Madison County No. 1 out of 13 of what it termed "judicial hellholes" nationwide and ranked St. Louis Circuit Court 11th worst.
Both court systems also were listed last year in the association's report, which lumped numerous venues together but did not rank them.
This year's report is called "Bringing Justice to Judicial Hellholes 2003." The tort reform group, along with groups such as the Illinois Civil Justice League and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have vigorously criticized the legal systems in Madison County and the city of St. Louis.
The report slams the courts for what it claims are exorbitant awards, easy certification of class-action suits and procedures that force defendants to settle out of court rather than risk trials before judges who, it says, "are far more favorably disposed toward injured plaintiffs' claims."
Randy Bono, a plaintiffs' attorney with The Simmons Firm in East Alton, led a group of lawyers in his office in a mock cheer of the announcement Wednesday afternoon.
"We're number one! We're number one!" chanted the lawyers, who were preparing for asbestos lawsuit trials next week.
Bono called the American Tort Reform Association a group of "corporate-funded intimidators."
"They call themselves a grass-roots group, but they're really AstroTurf manufactured by the tobacco and insurance industries," Bono said. "They specialize in attacking the judiciary in Mississippi, Texas, Alabama, West Virginia, California and anywhere else in the country where you can get a fair trial against the major corporations. They're trying to intimidate the judiciary."
The report contends that Madison County judges are too willing to take cases from across the country, with little or no local connection.
"Through artful pleading, (trial) lawyers are skilled at stopping defense lawyers from moving their cases to a more neutral forum by including a named plaintiff from the defendant's home state," the report states.
Sherman Joyce, the association's president, says he believes his campaign is having an impact. He cited two recent rulings by Illinois' high court. In one, the court allowed Philip Morris to post a $6 billion bond, half of the amount originally ordered, and to appeal its case directly to the high court. In the other case, the court ordered a personal injury suit moved from Madison to Macoupin County.
Joyce said, "What we hear anecdotally and otherwise is that the judiciary is concerned about the reputation that Madison County is giving the whole state."
The report criticized St. Louis courts as "infamous" for rewards to plaintiffs. "(The court) awarded eight of the 21 highest plaintiffs' verdicts in Missouri, a state made up of 45 judicial circuits and two federal district courts."
John Riley, the assistant presiding St. Louis Circuit Court judge, said that calling the court a judicial hellhole is unfair to city jurors.
"The folks that come in here week after week in the interest of justice don't deserve this," Riley said.
As in other jurisdictions, jurors in St. Louis sometimes award plaintiffs large sums. But frequently they decide cases in favor of the defendants, Riley said.
"There's no guarantee of a plaintiff's verdict when you go to trial in the city of St. Louis," he added.
After Madison County, the association's top 13 includes by rank: Jefferson County, Texas; Mississippi's 22nd Judicial Circuit; Hidalgo County, Texas; Orleans Parish, La.; West Virginia; Nueces County, Texas; Los Angeles County; Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas; Miami-Dade County, Fla.; city of St. Louis; and, in 12th and 13th place, Mississippi's Holmes and Hinds counties.
Tim Bryant of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.