Barry:
I sincerely hope it will not pass. This will show the lawyers that the public are not idiots, and that we are not so easily manipulated.
Here is proposition 211 in it's entirity:
"Attorney-Client Fee Arrangements.
Securities Fraud. Lawsuits. Initiative Statute.
Official Title and Summary Prepared by the Attorney General
ATTORNEY-CLIENT FEE ARRANGEMENTS.
SECURITIES FRAUD. IAWSUITS. INITIATI[VE STATUTE.
ú Prohibits restrictions on attorney-client fee arrangements, except as allowed by laws existing on January 1, 1995.
ú Prohibits deceptive conduct by any person in securities transactions resulting in loss to pension, retirement funds, savings. Imposes civil liability, including punitive damages, for losses.
ú Authorizes class actions, derivative suits; adds presumption fraudulent acts affected market value of security.
ú Prohibits indemnification of officers found liable for fraudulent acts by business entities, but may purchase insurance to cover liability.
ú Declares measure conflicts with other ballot measures that restrict attorney fees or securities fraud actions.
Summary of Legislative Analyst's
Estimate of Net State and Local Government Fiscal Impact:
ú Potential increase in court-related costs to state and local governments of an unknown, but probably not significant, amount.
ú Potential increase in revenue to the state of an unknown, but probably not significant, amount."
As you can see, it prohibits fee restrictions in ALL lawsuits. That means attorneys can file class action lawsuits using professional plaintives and rake it in big. It also allows personal lawsuits against company officers but allow them to purchase insurance to ensure that they have "deep pockets" to go after.
Adrian |
