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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 9, 1999 |
CONTACT: John Sullivan PHONE: (916) 443-4900
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SACRAMENTO - California trial lawyers contributed a total of $10.3 million to California candidates and parties in statewide and legislative races in the 1997-98 election cycle, the Civil Justice Association of California (CJAC) reported today. Of the total, $9.8 million was contributed directly to candidates and $500,000 was given indirectly to candidates through political parties. The Association's research last November revealed $8.6 million in direct contributions to statewide and legislative candidates. The additional $1.2 million came in the late contributions reported after the first of this year.
"These contributions are gargantuan when you consider that in the four years between 1990 and 1994 the total amount of trial lawyer contributions in all state elections in California, Texas and Alabama combined was just over $17 million," said John Sullivan, Civil Justice Association of California president.
According to the Secretary of State's office, trial lawyers contributed $3.4 million to Governor Davis' campaign, accounting for 10 percent of his overall campaign contributions. Attorney General Bill Lockyer received $1.4 million from trial lawyers - 25 percent of his total campaign contributions. Plaintiff lawyers gave $4.7 million to state Senate and Assembly races.
Trial lawyers and their supporters are sponsoring legislation this year that would increase casualty insurance rates and health care costs. "The relatively small segment of the state's lawyers who can afford to contribute multi-millions to candidates can afford to insure any kind of car and can pay for all the medical services they could ever need. People not so fortunate will be watching to see how the Legislature deals with the plaintiffs' lawyers agenda that would give contingency fee lawyers more ways to file shakedown lawsuits and make everyone else pay in the form of higher insurance rates, less access to health care, and increased taxpayer costs."
Sullivan added that while political contributions are a legitimate part of our freedom to communicate and select our representatives in government, the public should know when narrow interests are running a massive program to elect people they hope will look out for them in Sacramento.
