Our Mission

Consumers for Civil Justice is a Washington, D.C. non-profit organization founded by individuals and their families who want to ensure that injured people, doctors, legislators, and the public have access to accurate facts regarding proposed tort "reform."

Tort reform advocates want to put across-the-board limits on the lawsuit damages that severely injured people are entitled to in cases against doctors, nurses or health care facilities that have acted carelessly. The mayor has introduced this legislation. If it passes, a patient with brain damage, blindness or paralysis could have their medical bills and lost wages paid but receive no more damages beyond the bills and wages than someone with a trivial injury. The mayor's bill has a number of other provisions that all are aimed at making it harder for patients injured by medical negligence to win in court.

Is this fair to injured patients?

Is it necessary for doctors to have affordable malpractice insurance?

On this web site, we have gathered together objective, independent studies of the malpractice issue from government agencies and private think tanks. Please click on "Falling Claims and Rising Premiums in the Medical Malpractice Insurance Industry" and "Med-Mal, Just the Facts" at the bottom of this page to study this material. You will find that the independent experts say:

  • Malpractice lawsuits and claims have not had any dramatic increase that would justify the big increases in insurance premiums doctors have been forced to pay.
  • Jury verdicts have held steady, and doctors win most trials.
  • The ups and downs of malpractice insurance premiums follow the investment habits of insurance companies. Doctors are saddled with rate increases when the companies see their investment returns fall, and rates are cut to attract more business from doctors when investment returns are on the rise.

What does this mean for consumers?

We believe that lawsuits and lawyers are being unfairly scapegoated for the problem of affordable malpractice insurance. It's easy to blame the victims. But is it fair? You decide, based on all the facts.

Is there another answer? We believe there is. Consumers for Civil Justice believes that reform efforts should be directed to developing and supporting patient safety and corporate responsibility for the insurance industry. This includes:

  • Patient safety initiatives to make hospitals and clinics safer places with fewer episodes of unnecessary injuries to patients.
  • Insurance reform that forces insurance companies to open their books to public scrutiny and prohibits gouging of doctors.
  • Keeping in place a civil justice system that encourages responsibility and accountability * just as a jjust society requires for all its members.

This is our mission: to educate the citizens of our nation's capital about insurance reform and to support the rights of injured people and their families to seek fair compensation via their Constitutional right to a trial by jury.

We achieve our mission by giving voice to the facts.

Please contact us with your comments.

For more information, please read the following: