A new report from the American Tort Reform Foundation (ATRF) does not pull punches on its critique of state judicial issues, and it has placed Georgia as number 4 on its “Judicial Hellholes” list. While not in the top spot any longer (as it was the last two years), its Georgia’s sixth year in a row to make the ignominious list. The The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Georgia chapter noted the report and its impact on the Georgia economy.
“Georgia’s legal climate remains a big concern and expense for small businesses,” said NFIB State Director Hunter Loggins. “ATRF’s report highlights many of the issues affecting employers and consumers throughout the state. We’re glad this is a priority for Gov. Brian Kemp, and we look forward to working with him and legislative leaders to address this important issue in next year’s legislative session.”
The report spotlighted Georgia’s reputation for “nuclear verdicts” – jury awards exceeding $10 million – and that the state allows certain trial tactics frowned upon by the tort reform community. NFIB says the situation loses jobs and drives up costs, noting that Georgians pay an annual “tort tax” of more than $1,372 – 32 percent more than neighboring states.
The issue is likely to be one of the top priorities for the legislature this upcoming session. That fact alone is one reason why Georgia moved down a handful of spots this year. That, and the fact that the jurisdictions ahead of us – Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, New York City, and South Carolina’s asbestos litigation, are so overwhelmed with abuse. One curious item is Georgia’s continuing use of an old seatbelt gag rule that prevents a jury from hearing evidence of whether or not a passenger was wearing a seatbelt at the time of a crash (it is unclear if this is related to the infamous Speaker Tom Murphy carve out for not wearing a seatbelt when he was driving his old truck).
The state has already done some work to address rising insurance costs, enacting legislation last year to begin bringing them down. Part of that legislation was a requirement that the Insurance Commissioner complete a study on the issue. That study came out in November and highlighted a number of issues. One of the top contributors to the problem is just the sheer volume of cases. The state has seen some incredible population and economic growth over the last ten years but the average claim count has run far ahead of those growth numbers. From 2014-2018, the average claim count was 584,000. Between 2019 and 2023, the average claim count was 729,000 – nearly a 25 percent increase. The cause of the rising claims numbers is not immediately clear but undoubtedly tort lawyers are aware of the friendlier climate here and taking advantage.
“It’s time for real reform,” said Loggins. “Georgia’s legal system should protect fairness, not encourage abuse. Every resident deserves a system that works for everyone.”
To read the full report:
https://www.judicialhellholes.org/reports/2024-2025/2024-2025-executive-summary/
