In an interesting piece from December, 2003, Lord Levene of Portsoken, chair of Lloyd's of London -- aka The Little Coffee House That Could (read the article, if that description baffles you) -- bemoans the increasing Americanization of the philosophy of British civil justice, in the form of a rising "compensation culture." His complaints will have a familiar ring to those who have followed the Business vs. Trial Lawyers battles of recent years in this country:
The real winners are the ambulance chasers, so-called “lawyers” — for many are not qualified, but are really just advisers. “No win, no fee”, they hiss, luring anyone with a possible claim into court. After the “have-a-go hero”, we now have the “have-a-go victim” — go to court and try your luck.
Some things have changed. There is more mediation of cases, which has speeded up the process and reduced costs. There is greater clarity in the claims process.
But as claims across society increase, insurers, sadly, will have no choice but to increase premiums. We don’t want those rises any more than consumers. But if we do not have enough capital to cover policies, we risk not being able to meet claims, and our reputation begins to unravel.
The system we have at the moment is worse than a mess — it’s a blight on our lives and our economy. Politicians and regulators in Whitehall and Westminster need to wake up and, as Edward Lloyd might have said, smell the coffee.
[Link via All American tort reform advocate Walter Olson at PointofLaw.com.]
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