Hundreds of hard-working, honest people dutifully carry out the peoples’ business in our local court systems day in and day out – as well to the north in Cook Co. But, other forces, i.e., inventive and sometimes unscrupulous lawyers, have gamed the courts, i.e., with financial support for persuadable judges, to ensure favorable outcomes for them, not for thee.
The “Judicial Hellhole” label doesn’t attach to the folks who fulfill their public servant roles with fidelity to you. It’s directed at those who have worked tirelessly for a couple of decades turning what used to be an annual designation into a perennial one – Madison, St. Clair and Cook county courts are now reputed to be “Everlasting” hellholes.
“This trio of Illinois counties is a magnet for asbestos litigation and ‘no-injury’ lawsuits stemming from the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act,” says the American Tort Reform Association’s hellhole report released on Dec. 7.
“Making matters worse, the Illinois General Assembly is one of the most plaintiff-friendly legislatures in the country and Governor J.B. Pritzker (D) supports a liability-expanding agenda to the detriment of Illinois citizens.”
A national trend in the opposite direction has not diminished the magnetic force of these three counties.
“Despite an 11% decrease in the number of asbestos lawsuits filed in 2020 nationwide, both Madison and St. Clair counties experienced an increase in filings,” the report notes. “Plaintiffs flock to these county courthouses due to their plaintiff-friendly reputations, low evidentiary standards, and judges’ willingness to allow meritless claims to survive.”
The three counties combined moved up three spaces this year, from No. 8 to No, 5, earning the entire state as an everlasting judicial hellhole.
“Jurisdictions in Illinois have been named Judicial Hellholes every year since the report’s inception,” its authors stress. “Recurring issues over the past 20 years include asbestos litigation, lawsuits that do not actually claim any sort of injury occurred, including these jurisdictions welcoming those related to data privacy, and out-of-state lawsuits.”
The economic impact is staggering.
“Excessive tort costs cost Illinois 140,630 jobs, $9.57 billion in wages, and $27.51 billion in economic output annually,” the report concludes.
“Lawsuit abuse results in less investment in businesses, less productivity, and more time and money being spent on litigation. Furthermore, if the Illinois legislature focused on improving the civil justice climate it could sate the state’s residents and businesses over $13 billion. Lawsuit abuse imposes a ‘tort tax’ of $1,049 per Illinois resident.”