October 2, 2006

A topping off and subsequent decline in the number of asbestos lawsuits has been predicted many times in the past -- always erroneously -- and this new ABA Journal survey of the field (via Childs) doesn't really prove the case either way on whether it's finally happening. It does have useful tidbits on the impact or lack of same of various reform measures, including case management initiatives, legislated "medical criteria" for claims, and punitive damage limits. And this on Mississippi reforms:

As recently as 2002, says [Biloxi defense lawyer Ronald] Peresich, “we probably had 120,000 to 130,000 claimants in Mississippi—an enormous number. Today, that number is probably down to about 25,000,” he says, thanks to tort reform legislation and the election of state supreme court judges “who would not permit Mississippi to continue to be a dumping ground” for claims of dubious merit. (Peresich participated in the process of drafting the legislation.)