Political Quotes

“Let me just say that I think that a 25-percent penalty is an inducement for settlement. The gentleman keeps acting like it is nothing. Twenty-five percent of the legal fees of the defendant can be an awful lot of money, especially in a Federal case. We are not talking about peanuts. I think that this will dissuade people from going to trial, and it will force a settlement. The gentleman acts like if it is not 100 percent, it is not going to force a settlement. The other thing you are discounting is that if it is a frivolous case, the judge can start at the 25 percent and go all the way to the 100 percent level. So you can have total loser pays. This is a good middle ground. It will dissuade people from going to court. It will force settlements. So I think the gentleman is overstating the case. It will not be as onerous as far as forcing settlements as 100 percent. But it certainly is going to force a lot of these people to settle out of court without going to trial. Twenty-five percent is a step in the right direction, and it still gives the judge latitude to go all the way to 100 percent. I think this is a good amendment.”