The Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute (TCCRI) and The James Madison Institute (JMI) today released the joint publication of a new white paper entitled “The Litigation Lobby: Civil Justice Reform and the Future of the Texas-Florida Economic Advantage.”
“The Litigation Lobby” report by JMI lays out the history of successful civil litigation reform efforts that made Texas and Florida models for the rest of the country when it comes to economic growth, and how powerful interest groups are seeking to unwind these gains.
The paper highlights recent trends suggesting that legislators in both states should rededicate themselves to the principles that helped achieve this great success in the first place. The paper concludes with recommendations to that end, including further addressing unreasonable damage awards, incentives created by third-party litigation financing, and more.
The paper documents how trial lawyers and their allied organizations are working to roll back reforms in both states, including:
Pouring tens of millions into state elections to influence outcomes, including funding aimed largely at Republican primaries, and targeted Florida contributions sent just days after legislation to weaken reforms was filed.
- Reviving one-way attorney fee structures that were repealed for driving up insurance costs, including a 2025 Florida bill that sought to redefine the “prevailing party” before it died in committee.
- Expanding liability through new causes of action and the repeal of existing damages protections, such as a Florida bill to allow new categories of noneconomic damages in medical negligence cases without any accompanying caps.
- Leaving third-party litigation financing largely unregulated, giving rise to an industry that is projected to grow from roughly $15 billion today to as much as $56 billion by 2035, with no mandatory disclosure of foreign financiers who may seek access to privileged litigation documents.
To protect these gains, the paper offers recommendations for lawmakers in both states, including to:
- Reconsider legislation designed to prevent unreasonable damage awards and rising public costs, such as redefining how future lost earnings and noneconomic damages are calculated, and pairing any expansion of medical negligence liability with reasonable damages limitations;
- Reconsider legislation addressing the risks of third-party litigation funding, including mandatory disclosure of funding agreements and safeguards against foreign government and sovereign wealth fund involvement in U.S. litigation; and
- Reconsider a reasonable timeline for the Attorney General’s exclusive jurisdiction over election crimes, allowing local officials a defined window to act before the state intervenes.
TCCRI Executive Director, Tom Aldred, stated about the paper: “Texas has done an exceptional job creating a business-friendly environment, largely through its multi-decade tort reform efforts. This paper holds those reforms up as an example that we hope other states will follow.”
Dr. Robert McClure, President & CEO of JMI added, “Florida’s rise as one of the nation’s premier destinations for business and capital was not an accident. It was built over decades, in part, by deliberate legal reforms that gave businesses and families confidence in a fair, predictable system. This paper is a reminder that those gains can be undone if we let our guard down.”
