Judicial Hellholes 2008/2009

The United States includes more than 3,000 counties and 30,000 incorporated cities. In the vast majority of these jurisdictions, diligent and impartial judges apply the law fairly. The Judicial Hellholes 2008/2009 report shines its harshest spotlight on seven areas that too often fall short of this standard. In these jurisdictions judges systematically make decisions that unfairly skew personal injury litigation, often to the detriment of out-of-state companies and in favor of local plaintiffs.

In issuing its annual Judicial Hellholes report, ATRF works to rebalance the scales of justice to their properly neutral position. In that spirit, the report exposes suspect legal rulings and inappropriate relationships of judges or other public officials. This year’s report takes an additional step of highlighting the abuses and excesses of some influential members of the trial bar in the new Rogues’ Gallery, and anticipates future efforts by coordinated personal injury attorneys to expand liability in a section on Tort Deform. However, the focus of this report, as in years past, remains primarily on the judges who possess significant autonomy when it comes to administering cases before them and thus can create mischief under any system. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of judges to ensure that all civil litigants receive Equal Justice Under Law.