The Hope Street Group, a nonpartisan policy organization founded and operated by young business leaders from the private sector, today released a tort reform proposal that protects the rights of the injured while reducing the debilitating costs of the current torts system.

In a new paper titled "Just Compensation: Restoring Fairness and Efficiency to America's Civil Justice System," the Hope Street Group finds that the current system neither fairly compensates victims nor adequately deters wrongful behavior.

"America's civil justice system is broken," said Carrie Nixon, Executive Director of the Hope Street Group. "Many victims are left out in the cold, and the high cost of the current system is creating a multibillion dollar drag on the economy."

However, cries for reform from the medical and business communities are met with arguments that tort reform threatens victims' rights. These arguments are prevailing in Washington, where the Senate has repeatedly been blocked from considering class action and medical malpractice reform measures.

The Hope Street Group's paper proposes a comprehensive "grand bargain" approach to tort reform that protects the rights of the injured while reducing costs to the economy overall. This proposal reins in runaway jury verdicts, broadens access to justice for victims, discourages frivolous lawsuits, and restores the true intent of class actions.

"Washington can keep reform on the back burner, but in the meantime, victims and the economy will continue to suffer," said Nixon. "It's time for a grand bargain on tort reform."

The full text of "Just Compensation" is attached below.

The Hope Street Group is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded by a new generation of business leaders to promote domestic policies of opportunity and growth. Its initial policy platform, "Building the Opportunity Economy," was released in June 2003.