January 22, 2001

San Diego Union Tribune
P.O. Box 120191
San Diego, California 92112-0191

VIA FACSIMILE - 619-293-1440

Dear Editor:

Personal injury lawyers and their allies are trying to spin the outrageous $88.5 million attorney fees award in the smog fee case (San Diego Union-Tribune, January 16, 2001 opinion article) to fit their own agenda„to deny individuals and firms the option of agreeing to settle disputes through arbitration.

What really went wrong in the smog case was letting private parties decide in secret how many public tax dollars these plaintiffs' lawyers got to take to the bank. You can bet if the process had been conducted in the open in front of a judge or legislative committee, the lawyers' pay would have been something less than the estimated $8,000 an hour fee windfall that resulted.

At least the Governor, Attorney General, and other officials protesting the fees are getting a sample of the class action lawsuit rip offs that consumers and businesses have been encountering for years. Maybe we will see some new allies in the fight for class action lawsuit reform.

In the meantime, the Governor, the Legislature, and the courts should continue to support fair arbitration as a faster, less costly way to solve problems between private parties.

Sincerely,

John H. Sullivan
President
Civil Justice Association of California