BEST OF 2023: The Lawsuit Lobby’s Taxpayer Drain

Editor’s Note: Few professions are more criticized than lawyers and lobbyists. The Lawsuit Lobby seems to have combined the worst of both, and Robert Stilson’s report series on the Lawsuit Lobby garnered significant attention beginning in early 2023. See also the companion video (below) and related content.

Most Americans have probably seen or heard advertisements from lawyers in recent months regarding contaminated water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. Attorneys have reportedly been spending vast sums on these ads, prompted by the passage of congressional legislation allowing veterans and others who suffered illness or injury from the water to pursue otherwise-barred claims against the federal government. Regrettably, mounting concern suggests that legislators may have undermined their own goal of helping these veterans by failing to statutorily cap attorney’s fees in Camp Lejeune cases. Some are pointing the finger at trial-lawyer special interests, also called the Lawsuit Lobby.