Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, my amendment would reinstate the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure rule 11(c)(2) safe harbor provision, which allows parties to avoid penalties, by withdrawing or correcting the claims within 14 days from when the alleged violation of rule 11(b) becomes known, anytime up until the end of the discovery period. This bill would force attorneys to assess their case blindly as it stands. Every attorney knows to assess their case based upon an objective set of facts regarding the situation. A good attorney would never overpromise a cause of action, but this bill prevents even a fair assessment of a case. A full and accurate analysis of the merits of the case must be done on day one, because this bill requires mandatory sanctions with no grace period. We have tried this already, and it did not work. This bill will eliminate rule 11(c)(2)'s safe harbor provision, which currently allows the target of a rule 11 motion for sanctions to withdraw or correct the paper claim, defense, contention, or denial that is the subject of the motion for sanctions within 21 days after service. Between 1938 and 1983, there were only 19 rule 11 filings. In 1983, rule 11 was changed to the standard being proposed by this bill. In the 10 years without this safe harbor provision, nearly 7,000 motions for sanctions were made.…”