Good grief - now the trial lawyers want a White House lawsuit czar

One thing the Obama White House doesn’t lack is czars. So far, there are or soon will be an energy czar, an economy czar, a health care czar and an urban affairs czar. There may yet be a White House car czar, and, if the class-action trial lawyers have their way – which they almost always do when the Democrats they bought and paid for are in power – there will soon be a lawsuit czar, too. The American Association for Justice (AAJ) nee American Trial Lawyers Association (ATLA) was careful in its statement last week not to call explicitly for a czar. Shorn of AAJ’s rhetorical smoke, however, it’s clear a czar is exactly what AAJ has in mind with its proposed White House office to “coordinate federalism issues” throughout the executive branch.

The immediate focus of AAJ’s White House lawsuit czar would be “pre-emption.” The class-action lawyers want to make sure Obama makes good on a campaign promise to reverse the recent trend among federal regulators to pre-empt – i.e. supersede - state jurisdiction on consumer safety regulation, particularly in the areas of transportation and prescription drugs. The class-action lawyers want to be able to file 50 separate class-action suits against an alleged corporate sinner instead of just one in federal court.

The White House lawsuit czar is needed, AAJ claims, to insure “the right of Americans to hold wrongdoers accountable through the civil justice system.” Translated, AAJ knows more class-action lawsuits mean more settlements mean more fees for the attorneys. The AAJ proposal couldn’t be more ill-timed. As the Institute for Legal Reform’s Lisa Rickard said “America cannot sue its way out of this recession. More lawsuits won't create more jobs, help consumers or rebuild America's infrastructure.”

President Obama will soon have to act on another issue on which his decision could mean another class-action lawsuit bonanza. The Senate last Thursday approved the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which the House passed in early January. If Obama signs Ledbetter, as he promised during the 2008 presidential campaign, the new law will reverse a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision by removing the statute of limitations on pay discrimination suits. Instead of having to file within the 180 days specified by the court, Ledbetter enables class-action trial lawyers to haul employers to court decades after an alleged harm took place. Obama displayed his independence by supporting the Class Action Fairness Act in 2005. Now he should veto Ledbetter and tell AAJ to go find their own czar.