Thanks to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s lockdowns, Metro-East small businesses are ailing.
So here comes State Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Swansea), taking advantage. That’s at the behest of the Illinois trial lawyers-- and Hoffman himself is one-- whose agenda typically comes first in Springfield.
When a personal injury plaintiff files a lawsuit, if they win, they are typically entitled to interest on their damages award from the day they file the suit.
Hoffman’s House Bill 3360 would start the interest clock earlier-- not when the plaintiff files suit, but when a defendant first becomes aware that an injury was alleged. This could be as much as two years before a suit is filed.
That’s a state-mandated, nine percent interest clock that starts the moment someone claims your business is responsible for their injury.
We chronicle such injuries daily on these pages. Plaintiffs in slip and falls aren’t the ones asking for this law. It’s the lawyers who are, because it will serve to increase the size of their money settlements and help them secure more of them, more quickly.
"This legislation further tilts the playing field in the direction of the trial bar," said John Pastuovic, president of the Illinois Civil Justice League, one of a group of business associations opposing the bill.
Pastuovic said that House Bill 3360 “encourages the expansion of frivolous lawsuits and puts pressure on small businesses and other companies to settle lawsuits or face crushing financial consequences.
“They are essentially being forced to choose between going to trial or settl[ing] to stop the interest meter from running. This is the last thing that business needs to contend with during the ongoing COVID crisis.”
Tell someone who cares, and that’s not Hoffman.
His bill passed the State House and the State Senate. Gov. Pritzker will soon sign it into law.