ATRA, Others Urge Philadelphia Courts to Eliminate Unfair Elements of Civil Litigation

Answering a call from Philadelphia’s top judge for public input on the fairness and efficacy of two temporarily suspended procedural anomalies in personal injury mass tort cases there, ATRA joined other like-minded organizations and submitted this cover note and comments on January 23.

The latest Judicial Hellholes report takes Philadelphia courts to task for, among other things, their use of both “consolidation” and “reverse bifurcation,” procedures in asbestos and other mass tort cases that can unfairly stack the deck against defendants, and which, ATRA contends, have contributed significantlly to the rampant forum shopping that has made the“City of Unbrotherly Torts” a red-hot destination for litigation tourists from across the country.

ATRA’s comments urge a permanent end to the use of consolidation and reverse bifurcation in all mass tort cases.  To their credit, Philadelphia courts have already, as of January 1, 2012, put a permanent end to use of the two controversial procedures in all pharmaceutical mass torts.