Four ‘Judicial Hellholes’ States Ranked as Worst for Business

No one will be surprised to learn that four states notorious for their Judicial Hellholes and Watch List jurisdictions — California, New York, Illinois and New Jersey — have been ranked by corporate CEOs as the worst in the nation for doing business.

Chief Executive magazine’s just released seventh annual survey of 550 CEOs ranks the states from best to worst.  Tort-reforming Texas tops the list, while the hellholes noted above are at the very bottom.

In the case of Illinois, which home to at least three once-and-future Judicial Hellholes (Cook, Madison and St. Clair counties) and maybe a fourth (that’s right, we’re watching you, McLean County), the magazine says it’s “dropped 40 places in five years and is now in a death spiral.”    

Perhaps Illinois could rise in the CEOs’ ranking and someday return to solvency and prosperity, if only parasitic personal injury lawyers there would file a few more ridiculous consumer class actions or asbestos lawsuits seeking tens of millions of dollars in punitive damages.  Yeah, that ought get ’em back on track.