Common-Sense Lawsuit Reform Keeps Texas off ATRA Judicial Hellholes List
House Bill 1774 cited as a Point of Light for stopping lawsuit abuse

AUSTIN—Decisive action by the Texas Legislature to shut down abusive lawsuits following severe weather events helped Texas stay off the American Tort Reform Association’s (ATRA) 2017 Judicial Hellholes list. Preliminary analysis of lawsuit filings shows an 84 percent reduction in weather-related lawsuits since House Bill 1774 took effect.

“The Legislature put Texas consumers first by passing House Bill 1774 to shut down lawsuit abuse that was making property insurance more expensive and less accessible for Texans,” TLR Communications Director Lucy Nashed said. “For over two decades, Texas has fought back against personal injury trial lawyers and their job-killing agenda, passing common-sense reforms to keep our legal system fair, efficient and accessible each time a new abuse has arisen. This commitment has made Texas a national example for smart reforms.”

The 2017 report lists House Bill 1774 as a Point of Light, or a noteworthy action taken by judges, lawmakers or other government officials to stem abuse of the legal system. Last year’s Judicial Hellholes report listed Hidalgo County, Texas, as the ninth worst jurisdiction in the nation for lawsuit abuse. Hidalgo County was the birthplace of weather-related lawsuit abuse by storm-chasing lawyers.

ATRA is a nonprofit organization that works to educate the public about the civil justice system and tort law. It has compiled the Judicial Hellholes report since 2002. The full 2017 Judicial Hellholes report can be viewed here.

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