TORT REFORM BILL FILED IN ARK.

The Arkansas business community is behind a tort reform effort and the introduction of a bill that many believe will help restore rationality to the state’s tort system. According to the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII), which helped draft H.B. 1038, it was introduced by Reps. Ferguson and Parks as the first major insurance-related legislative effort in the 84th General Assembly of Arkansas. It is expected to face strong opposition from trial attorneys. Among other things, H.B. 1038 would: Establish a more equitable assessment of percentages of fault; Make a party responsible for the fault of another person or entity if both the party and the other person were acting in concert; Increase the standards required for the awarding of punitive damages along with caps on those damages; Require separate hearings on punitive damages; and Create changes in venue provisions.