The right of injured people to go to court and collect compensation from the perpetrators of their harm is one of the great achievements of American democracy. In our system, the poorest and most vulnerable, including those who are in need of medical care or are the disrupted families of sick and injured children, can challenge the largest corporation or government agency and hold them accountable for causing harm. But for 50 years, this system has been an embattled and vulnerable institution. The power and authority of civil jurors, who cannot be wined, dined and bought-off by corporate lobbyists, represent a tremendous threat to the corporate and wealthy power structure in this country. This is why the civil justice system needs protection. We all need the system to stay strong because without civil lawsuits, there would be even fewer checks on corporate misbehavior, injured people would have to rely on government health and disability programs to survive (i.e., taxpayers would end of paying for what a wrongdoer does), and the public would be kept in the dark about much corporate abuse and negligence.
