John Conyers

I want to commend to him Anthony Lewis' op-ed of March 11, 1996, which pointed out how terrorism wins when we undermine the Constitution, and today's New York Times editorial, which is entitled ``The Wrong Answer to Terrorism,'' and I…

How many know whether or not there will be an unprecedented increase in media concentration if this measure becomes law? Answer: Not many. But does it? Well, the answer is that at a time that we need greater and more diverse media voices…

This amendment strikes a blow against U.S. citizens, the same as the other discovery amendment tried to do.

Reclaiming my time, the current language in this bill is carefully balanced. It offers a carrot and a stick. The end result is a substantially more balanced playing field.

I rise in clear opposition to an amendment which will ultimately have the effect of immunizing manufacturers of defective products who happen to obtain FDA approval. This amendment would provide a complete defense to liability for any drug…

Mr. Chairman, what we just heard explained as the reason for opposing this amendment is absolutely astonishing. We are saying we should not subject a foreign manufacturer to our legal process because of free trade considerations. Now…

The fact of the matter is if the law can apply in a case being prosecuted civilly, it ought to apply. Treble damages under RICO is an incredibly important tool, without which we are going to be at a loss for a lot of violations, including…

If I could remind the gentleman, we have already read the statute on the floor. It includes as a predicate offense securities violations. It is in plain English, and it was there from the first day that RICO was enacted into law, having…

Mr. Chairman, about the gentleman's concern, does he know that alleged Mafia links in securities cases would not be prosecutable under RICO? Is that part of his intention in repealing RICO, as applies to securities?

In closing, the loser pays is a phrase that appeals to everyone who has heard it. It removes itself to anecdotes about court cases that appeared or produced an absurd or abusive outcome, but government by anecdote can produce disastrous…

No, I did not mean to complicate the relationship of the defendant with his client. His recovery would be in a sense, even if it is hourly, which is frequently the case for defense counsel, it would be contingent on the number of hours…

May I respond to my colleague on the Committee on the Judiciary by saying that there are relatively rare instances where a defense counsel is paid on a contingency basis except that the way that they are paid is contingent upon an outcome…

Well, there are contingent fees, but there are other ways that a defense counsel can be reimbursed as the gentleman knows. For example, when a case settles, there can be a bonus or some kind of contractual stipulation for increased…

I would hope we all support the American rule rather than one side, but let me point out to my colleagues that the whole notion that there is some superior method enforcing settlement of cases as opposed to having them tried is one that I…

Let me ask the gentleman one thing. When was the last time the gentleman heard a corporation look on television and see an ad for a plaintiff's law firm saying, ``No payment if we don't win''? Has the gentleman ever heard of a corporation…

Does not the gentleman concede that this moves the measure out of the draconian nature of punishing people for bringing lawsuits to dealing with lawsuits that may in fact be frivolous, malicious, or fraudulent? Is that not a good thing?

The base underlying the bill is worse than that English rule, because at least the English rule let people who had lawyers appointed be free of being assessed costs. This rule does not take that into consideration. I urge the Berman…

For us to suggest we do not have a remedy for frivolity that is discovered within the first 90 days is to misread seriously the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. We have such a rule. What I am saying to the gentleman is we do not need to…

I just wanted to join in the correction of my friend, the gentleman from Pennsylvania, because a zero recovery from the plaintiff raises no question whatsoever about frivolity, because the test is of the evidence, which you could lose by a…

So would I, but that is not what is in the bill unfortunately. I quite agree. But why would we make this a more difficult lawsuit for a working person who thinks he might have a 70-percent chance than he already has? I mean, if it is a…

Why are you tightening the rope around the neck of a plaintiff, a working class plaintiff in the first place?

Then I take it that the gentleman from California agrees with me that a working person bringing a suit where he thought he had a 70-percent chance of recovery would be under the gun if he had to go into court with the assumption that if he…

First, we believe that fee-shifting provisions such as that in H.R. 988 are unfair, unnecessary, and unwise. That provision would, with limited exceptions, require the court to order one party to pay attorney's fees of another if the…

I reclaim my time. That is a possibility, but there are also a lot of other possibilities. I think it is very clear, Mr. Chairman, that a 30-percent threshold would be supported by the same people that would now be asked to support a…

And that would reduce a number of, a large number, of claims that might be, while they may not be called frivolous, they certainly might not have the merit that the 30 percent threshold would have?