100 Years of Conflict: The Past and Future of Tort Retrenchment
70 Pages Posted: 20 Apr 2005
Abstract
John Nockleby and Shannon Curreri argue in "100 Years Of Conflict: The Past And Future Of Tort Retrenchment," that tort reform is a political movement reacting against several decades of common law judging. Redefining the tort "reform" movement as actually retrenchment, Nockleby & Curreri examine the contemporary political battles over tort law against the backdrop of earlier social, political, and economic forces that transformed the American civil justice system during the first three quarters of the twentieth century. These developments include litigating major social harms through the tort system, expanding consumer and employee rights and duties to protect others, recognizing emotional harm as a compensable loss, and the rise in business-to-business tort litigation. The current political conflicts over tort law are best understood as an effort to retreat from those achievements.
JEL Classification: K00
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation