Constitutional Stumbling Blocks to Legislative Tort Reform

Recent attempts by state legislators to reform the tort system have frequently been struck down by the courts on constitutional grounds. In this light, the author reviews the hostile judicial reactions to tort reform from the turn-of-the-century challenges to workers' compensation schemes through present day reform efforts. In the discussion of modern day efforts, the author focuses on attempts by the Florida Legislature to deal with the insurance crisis and then examines the Florida Supreme Court's use of state constitutional provisions to block these efforts. The author concludes that the judiciary should allow the legislature and the voters a freer hand in creating new tort law.