John Cornyn: “I will speak generally about the issue of class action reform contained in S. 5, because I believe the American civil…”

“I will speak generally about the issue of class action reform contained in S. 5, because I believe the American civil justice system is, in many ways, at a crossroads. We have an opportunity to choose between taking a path toward greater freedom and responsibility, or heading down a path that encourages lawsuit abuse and cripples our ability to compete in a global economy. Now is the time, I believe-- actually it is past time--to enact the reforms necessary to ensure America's competitiveness in the 21st century. I am struck, as I listen to the critics of this bill, many of whom are the same people who complain about the fact that American jobs are being sent offshore to places like India, China, and elsewhere, when one of the very causes of the damage to America's global competitiveness is our civil justice system. I think people of good faith and good will agree that the goal of our civil justice system ought to be getting people who are truly injured as a result of the fault of another fair compensation. But I think also, being objective about this issue and some of the examples of abuses that we have seen, we know too often that this goal is not being met in the current environment. We see lawsuit abuse particularly in the class action area and also in the asbestos area. This abuse is having a damaging impact on our economy.”