Lawyers told to practice reform
LJ
these da vs.
u . IUN
(API Lawyers
are out of the
politic rtl i rossfire
but there's no guar
anteed amnesty for n profession
that i an easily bec ome a target
So steps toward self-reform
undertaken now could prove
useful later
The American Bar Associa
tion is trying just that, its presi
dent saying that lawyers must
offer realistic solutions to the
problems of a balky and costly
legal system "or rightly stand
accused of being part of the
problem "
"Justice in the United States
takes too long, costs too much
and is virtually inaccessible and
unaffordable for too many
Americans." ABA President K
William ldu III, an Atlanta
lawyer, said in urging his col
leagues to make lflfM the year of
change and reform
hlit s;u(i lawyers have to ret •
ognize that mam Americans
consider them "a major part of
the problem with our justice s\ s
tem." and attornevs won't turn
around those attitudes without
taking the lead for t hanging
what's wrong.
That sounds like a belated
rebuttal to the law yer-bashing of
George Bush's administration
Dan Quayle. his vice president,
made the case It closed in
defeat in and there hasn't
been mm h talk of it since Pres
ident Bill Clinton and 1 Hilary
Hodhom Clinton both are
lawyers But then, so are Quay le
and his wife, Marilyn
One aspect of the argument,
malpractice claims and the role
of law yers in pursuing them, is
part of the debate over the Clin
ion health care plan Repuhli
i ans say the Clinton proposal
won't do enough to curb mal
practice lawsuits and awards
that are a cost I v part of the
health i are problem
The Clinton health plan calls
for malpractice claims to be
dealt with initially outside of
courtrooms, tn hoards ol mod
a ai experts or similar s\ stems of
dispute resolution But patients
still could sue it they weren't
satisfied, as long as they had a
specialist's statement that a doc
tor had been negligent.
Lawyers who take malprat tice
i.ases for contingency fees,
meaning part of the award or
settlement. could not claim
more than one-third of the inon
e\ Hut that's the usual rate now
Republican health (.are bills
would put a $250,000 limit on
malpractice awards for pain and
suffering, so-called non-eco
nomic damages The (Minton
plan would not. although it
would permit states to set limits
Quayle. now with a conserva
tive think tank in Indianapolis,
says the real problem is broader
the legal system itself. His open
ing argument on the issue was
before the American Bar Associ
ation convention in 1091, when
he urged a drastic overhaul in a
system he said was putting U S
business at a disadvantage in
world competition.
The applause lines were sure
tire, although it didn't do the
GOP ticket much good
"Does America really need 70
percent of the world's lawyers'”
Quayle used to ask. "Let’s stop
America's love affair with the
lawsuit," Hush said after
proposing drastic changes in the
system in 1992. including a
requirement that in some cases,
the loser pay the court costs of
the winning Kid** l hnsc were
rep* ted in (Congress
Hush protested the litigation
explosion, hliimed ii on trial
lawyers in tasseled loafers and
said legal costs were dragging
down the ei onoiny and costing
jobs
Hush wasn't the first president
to i omplain aliout the high cost
of lawsuits (iminv Carter said in
H)?H thot excessive litigation
and legal featherbedding were
drags on the e< ononis We
have the heaviest concentration
of lawyers on earth." he said
then It s heavier now.
By the numbers, tackling
law vers makes sense Theirs is
not a popular profession, and
they know it.
The bar association's own
puhlii opinion polling shows
growing! \nu.ism about lawyers
generally although people
tend to he satisfied with their
KOSbS
*Q QQ,
( oa>roicnt!
t of <) \l*trr oo I 'th b* PmciwHi ( ult
mmi i<^ \m »< .11 i s
r»( hjwbtTV tafrftt.Or T-»: 4*< IJftl
«r ► ivhhpitoOf.^i-^ iw:
J YEAR ENO SALE 1
40% OFF
ail <« vfO*« vMbnc <rtumo
POSTERS
La Follette
Frame Shop and Qallery
410 I. 11*h («*! Milll • futr^
484-1420
Shi
RENTALS!
Downhill or
Cross-Country
OPEN SUNOAYS12 5PM
Berg'/ fkI /hop
OpenMon Tbur I0-7 • Frt-Sjt I0-9
13th & Lawrence
683 1300
own
lo n poll tn July 1 'i'l l for the
Yiifiomi/ l.a\* Imtamt. nearly
f lire' -quarters of those surveyed
said there were loo many
lawyers and in percent said
their viess of the profession had
grown more negative
The AHA. vvhn It lists f 75.000
lawyer-members, is trying to
i hange that Ide said the assm i
alion will convene "a public
jury." including leaders from
other professions and polu v
groups, to t on for in the spring
on legal reform proposals, some
for state and federal legislation,
some for lawyers themselves
J V
' C .VJ ,V >>,
MAKE US LAUGH
If you've got the creativity and cartooning skills to
produce a regular comic strip, stop by the Emerald
offices, Suite 300 EMU for more information
(Ask for Jake)
Please Recycle
This Paper
IcPaint
Aldus PaaeMaker
Adobe Photoshop
FileMakel
erCard
Norton Ut
■
owerPoint
Microsoft Word
Aldus Persuasion
ris CAD
Mdus Fre
Ilustrator
WordPerfect
Microsoft Excel
Claris
Low educational discount prices on software
for your Macintosh or PC
Adobe • Aldus • Claris • Microsoft • WordPerfect • & more...
Microcomputer
Support center e
202 Computing Center
Monday - Friday
9am - 5pm
346-4402
I ducalional diseaunli aitnlailr In rligiNt Ul1 ^lujnils, family and 'la//