Earlier this month, the House Judiciary Committee voted a bill out of committee that if passed into law, would gut Americans’ abilities to bring nearly every type of mass action currently available to them in the Court system. With the stroke of a pen, this new law would eliminate large groups of victims’ legal rights to take action against corporate wrongdoing including in the areas of civil rights; consumer, employee, and investor protections.
The Trump administration has already made clear that it intends to dismantle federal agencies (including the EPA and the FDA) and prevent them from protecting our fellow citizens. Now, the Congress is moving to make sure that when you are harmed, you will not have access to the Federal court system.
This bill is an assault on the basic rights guaranteed to you as an American citizen.
The American Association for Justice (of which the attorneys at Levin Sedran & Berman are members) has also issued a statement on the subject:
“When Americans are unwittingly victimized by widespread corporate wrongdoing, justice demands that they have an opportunity to join together to hold those corporations accountable. However, H.R. 985 will deny groups of injured consumers, workers, and investors of their right to be represented by an attorney, while also providing corporations with new ways to hide evidence of wrongdoing.
“Shockingly, this committee has not held a single hearing to consider the consequences of this ill-conceived, overly-broad legislation. Supporting a bill that rigs the legal system against your constituents is offensive; doing so without even bothering to hold a public hearing and debate the merits is reprehensible.
“It is important to know how you will be impacted by H.R. 985, and other pending bills intended to limit your access to Courts (because H.R. 985 is not the only one). Please make your voice heard and call your U.S. Representatives and Senators.”