Quest for Fairness in Compensating Victims of September 11, The

Aside from natural disasters, when tragedy strikes - taking its toll in fatalities and serious injuries - we ordinarily look to the tort system for redress. Tort is not the exclusive form of redress, of course, in this era of private insurance and government disability programs. But still, it remains our most highly visible mechanism for assigning responsibility and providing compensation. In this Article, I will begin by describing the approach to compensation taken in the Victim Compensation Fund.

I will then discuss the implementing regulations promulgated by the Special Master appointed under the Fund. Next, I will offer a preliminary assessment of the significance of the Fund for the survivors of those who perished, as well as the seriously injured. And finally, I will speculate more broadly about the significance of the Fund for how we address the continuing problem of compensating victims of unexpected harm.