Articles

The Texas Supreme Court issued its decision today in Centocor v. Hamilton, a case in which PLF filed this friend of the court brief in defense of medicine-maker Centocor, Inc. The case involved a legal doctrine called the “learned intermediary doctrine,” which says that when a consumer buys a product on the advice of an expert, … ...

I spoke this morning with Armstrong & Getty about the Knox case, and about failed attempts to prevent the abuse of handicapped-access lawsuits. You can listen online here. … ...

It’s been another busy week.  Let’s jump right to the cases. Economic Liberty Project — Freedom of Contract We filed our amicus brief in Sanchez v. Valencia Holdings in the California Supreme Court. In this case, Mr. Gil Sanchez claims to have not read an arbitration clause in his sales contract when he purchased a … ...

After a reign of two years, Pennsylvania has given up its crown.  California now claims the woeful title of worst place for civil justice in the nation.  This critique may be due in part to the fact that, according to the American Tort Reform Association, California is the “undisputed heavyweight champion of the consumer class action.̶ ...

Individual Rights — School Choice Victory We had a nice victory from the Indiana Supreme Court when it upheld in Meredith v. Pence that state’s school choice program. As we’ve explained, this is a great victory for school choice because Indiana’s program is expansive and the teacher-funded attack on that state’s vouche ...

A recent New York Times article reports that many scholars believe the Roberts Court is more pro-business than its predecessors. To support this claim, they point mostly to procedural decisions, especially limits the Court has put on class action lawsuits. It is bizarre to call this Court more “pro-business” than its predecessors simply ...

Today PLF filed an amicus brief in Tincher v. Omega arguing that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court should determine whether manufacturers are liable for injuries caused by defectively designed products under a negligence standard.  Pennsylvania is notorious for litigation abuse—although thanks to a strong push for tort reform in that state, this y ...

Obamacare — Platonic Guardians We filed a friend of the court brief in Coons v. Geithner challenging the constitutionality of Obamacare’s “Independent Payment Advisory Board.” That’s the agency created by Obamacare that is charged with controlling Medicare reimbursement rates. But unlike any other agency Congress has e ...

Tapping their seemingly endless supply of ingenuity, plaintiffs’ lawyers have come up with a new legal theory for reaching deep pockets, and just the name would send chills up the spine of Steve Jobs, Henry Ford, or Jonas Salk.  Under the theory of “innovator liability,” manufacturers of brand-name drugs can be held liable for in ...