Navigating Rising Verdicts in Corporate Legal Battles

In recent years, industries such as trucking and propane have seen a big change in lawsuits. Verdicts – the decisions on who wins the case – have been getting much bigger. In trucking, the average decision went from $2.3 million in 2010 to $22.3 million in 2018. Similar concerns exist in the propane industry. People wonder if these huge verdicts really match the damage that happened.

Understanding why this is happening can be difficult, but some common ideas stand out. Since the economic crash in 2008, companies have been blamed when things go wrong. Jurors tend to blame companies and punish them if they acted carelessly. One way to change this is to help jurors understand the people behind the company and how much they value safety.

Lawyers representing people who bring lawsuits try to show that companies only cared about making money, not about being safe. They point out that the company didn’t follow safety rules, even if those things didn’t cause the accident.

To deal with these problems, companies must focus on safety and follow regulations closely. If there’s a mistake, they should fix it and keep a record of what they did. This helps keep things safe and gives lawyers a good story to tell in court.

A new thing that’s happening is that, more and more often, outside groups are paying for lawsuits. This lets people take legal action even if they don’t have the money. These groups give money to help with the case but also take a big part of any money won. There’s little that can be done to stop this.

The people who bring lawsuits are getting more organized. They collect and share information about companies, how they settled previous cases, and the experts that companies use in court. To fight this, companies on the defensive side need to be organized too. This is happening to some extent, but there is definitely room for improvement. They need to make sure their experts are really reliable and haven’t hidden any important information before.

The rise in big verdicts affects many things. Companies, insurance brokers, and lawyers all start thinking cases are worth more money than before. This makes insurance more expensive, and the cost of lawsuits goes up.

Even though incidents like fires and explosions are rare, they need special legal help. These cases are legally complicated and often involve serious injuries or deaths. A different situation can be found within industries where accidents happen frequently, such as in trucking. Following state and federal laws and company regulations is critical in this industry.

In the end, the best thing to do is focus on safety. That’s the strongest defense when dealing with the rise in big verdicts. While there are many reasons why verdicts are growing quickly, making safety a top priority and being prepared legally are the best defensive measures. As industries change and legal situations become more complex, the most important thing is to protect both the company’s reputation and the safety of everyone involved.