January 6, 2009

New on SSRN from Patricia Born (CSU Northridge), W. Kip Viscusi (Vanderbilt), and Tom Baker (Penn)(via TortsProf): Existing studies of the effects of tort reforms on liability insurance claim costs have focused on initially reported losses, but later data looking back on actually incurred losses can provide a more accurate picture. In the case of a "comprehensive sample of insurers writing medical malpractice insurance from 1984-2003" the improved data indicate that tort reform may have had a somewhat stronger effect in reducing claims than had appeared in the earlier studies.