The Bill Kumpe Law Firm

SO-CALLED TORT REFORM WILL BLOCK THE COURT HOUSE DOORS TO AVERAGE CITIZENS

The legal profession has been under assault for over a decade now by the Republican Party.  Talk radio hosts constantly demonize plaintiff's lawyers while their sponsors undermine the customer base of the whole profession by offering cheap online legal forms that purport to offer the same services as an attorney "for a fraction of the cost."

With a GOP majority in both Oklahoma Houses, so called tort reform will be on the agenda next session and there will be confrontation of classic proportions between the legislature and the legal profession.  Unfortunately, this time the lawyers are right and the GOP is dead wrong.  So called tort reform is bad public policy and may well be unconstitutional as applied.  As a matter of fact you could name so called tort reform legislation "The Plaintiff's Are Guaranteed to Lose Act of 2009."  Here's why:

The proposal on the table right now is actually a sort of constitutional blackmail.  Most so called tort reform proposals which heavily weigh the scales of civil justice in favor of lenders, insurances companies and large business interest have been found unconstitutional and rightly so. 

The threat from the legislature now is that if these unconstitutional tort reform packages meet further constitutional objections then the GOP majority will legislate in an area where it can do so without meeting a constitutional challenge by reducing the allowable contingency fee for plaintiff's lawyers to 25%.  Note that this proposed legislation will have no direct effect upon the substantial fees paid to defense lawyers thus leaving insurance companies, lenders and large business interests free to spend as much as necessary to have their way in the courts.

The GOP has the votes to pass this legislation, it will be popular among poorly informed conservative voters and it will achieve the desired effect. There will be fewer plaintiff's lawsuits.  There will be dramatically fewer smaller cases as only the big players will be able to afford to litigate.  The quality of Plaintiff's representation will be reduced dramatically as good lawyers will no longer will be able to afford to represent plaintiffs.  Plaintiff's cases will become much more easy to defend against since neither the plaintiff nor their attorney will be able to afford the expensive motions, experts, litigation aids and materials that are necessary to win against a well funded defendant.

The contingency fee is the only funding mechanism that allows poor people to have even a chance of having their day in court.  Without it, they will be left without a civil remedy in the vast majority of cases.


Tax Tip:

Don't forget to split your business mileage reports when working on this year's tax return.  The mileage rate for business miles from Jan. 1 to June 30, 2008, was 50.5 cents per mile. From July 1 to Dec. 31, 2008, the rate was 58.5 cents per mile.

SHOULD YOU USE A SMART PHONE?

Like millions of Americans, I am addicted to my smart phone.  It is the ultimate convenience.  I touch the little button on the headset in my ear and tell it who I want to call and it does it.  A little voice in my ear tells me who is calling me and warns me when I have an upcoming appointment.  When my beloved, expensive, little over a year old T-Mobile Dash bit the dust with a  design flaw that neither T-Mobile nor the Chinese manufacturer will address, I literally went through withdrawal.  It was the closest thing to a secretary I had.

But, there is another side to this wonderful convenience.  It is the ultimate snitch.  It keeps a record of every call you make providing in excruciating detail the parties, the length of the conversation and if you want to dig deep enough maybe even the general location that you called from.  All of those appointments, quick notes and timekeeping entries are being recorded more or less permanently. And, GPS enabled phones may even be tricked into tracking and keeping a record of your movements.

Recent changes to the Discovery Code make it very clear that cell phone and PDA records are discoverable evidence in a lawsuit or a criminal action.  Given this, some savvy business people are giving their beloved crackberries a second look and opting for a less capable phone that won't snitch on them if they get sued.

Church Members Threatened with Citation for Sharing Gospel in Park

Greenville, NC – Liberty Counsel is filing a federal lawsuit against the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation, alleging that the state policy used by park officials to threaten citation of members of Grace Baptist Church violates their right to freedom of speech. Liberty Counsel represents Pastor Tony Rivers and other church members in the case against the state of North Carolina, Lewis Ledford, Director of the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation, and several park officials.

While several members of Grace Baptist Church of Wilson gathered at Fort Macon State Park, playing group games, swimming in the ocean, and having a picnic, they shared about Jesus Christ with some park visitors before leaving. They also offered cold bottled water, consistent with Jesus’ statement in the book of Mark.

Park Ranger Crocker approached the group and explained that they were not allowed to communicate with others unless they first obtained a permit. Pastor Rivers was given a warning and told that if it continued, they would be cited for a park rule violation.  There is a minimum $30 fee for any such permit. There are no written criteria or time limits for approving permit applications. The rule does not define “meeting,” “exhibition,” “ceremony,” or “speech,” and requires that no matter how small the group, even if only one, the person desiring to speak must first obtain a permit.

Mathew D. Staver, Founder of Liberty Counsel and Dean of Liberty University School of Law, commented: “Permits for speech are prior restraints on speech, and in most cases such restraints are unconstitutional. It makes no sense to require a single individual to obtain a license to speak to another person in a public park. ”