Bad Science, Anti-Business Courts and Falling Competitiveness

The US Chamber of Commerce has released their annual rundown of the lawsuit climate throughout the states. New Jersey came in at number 35, a drop of nine spots from last year and this is the first time the Garden State has found itself outside the top 30.

A primary reason is the entrance of...how can we be polite?...junk science into the courtroom. As you might imagine, that junk science is used to justify lawsuit awards, often times against pharmaceutical companies. As our astute blog readers have already gathered, this has an impact on New Jersey's ability to compete and create jobs.

Chamber CEO Tom Donohue said at a morning press conference that lawyers offer a key perspective on the question of how much protection companies can expect to get from a fair and just court system.

"All the people we are asking are the people that represent people that spend a lot of money investing in states, creating jobs, moving companies," he said. "Risk consideration is becoming more and more significant in where money is put."

Sixty-three percent of respondents said a state's litigation environment is likely to affect important business decisions at their company, such as where to locate or do business.

Ever timely, we'll take this opportunity to promote our very first "Guest Blogger" here at NJ Business Matters. Marcus Rayner, Executive Director of the NJ Lawsuit Reform Alliance, will be joining us in a few weeks to blog about all-things tort reform.

Below is a one-minute interview with US Chamber CEO Tom Donohue on the nation's lawsuit climate.