How to Measure the Threat of Liability Lawsuits
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How many lawsuits have been filed over alleged COVID-19 exposure at businesses? That’s not the real question, say the NAM’s legal experts. The real question is: how many will be filed over the next three to five years?
A recent legal analysis shows that only 5% of lawsuits filed since March fall into the category of COVID-19 liability—but don’t be misled by that, says NAM Vice President of Legal and Deputy General Counsel Patrick Hedren.
Here are some pertinent facts to keep in mind:
- The vast majority of states have a two- or four-year statute of limitations period for bringing tort lawsuits.
- No state has a limitation of less than one year, and some allow lawsuits after four or even six years. Which means . . .
- The flood of COVID-19-exposure litigation isn’t expected until spring 2022 when these claims start to expire.
In other words, focusing on today’s numbers obscures a coming wave that could overwhelm businesses at a time when they can least afford it.
And here’s the case for targeted liability protections, says Hedren:
- Business leaders have been doing the best they can with the information they have in an evolving situation.
- Guidelines from the early days of the pandemic have been refined, rewritten and sometimes replaced.
- In many cases, local, state and federal guidelines have all conflicted with one another, creating a no-win situation for businesses that could face trouble no matter what they do.
The solution: Legislation offered by Senate Republicans—and vigorously pursued by the NAM—actually gives teeth to evolving safety measures by shielding businesses from liability if they make reasonable efforts to follow public health guidelines. (In many ways, it seems that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is reading from the NAM’s liability playbook.) If businesses engage in “gross negligence or willful misconduct that caused an actual exposure to coronavirus,” they remain open to lawsuits.
The last word: “The way to deal with safety is through thoughtful guidance that can stay fresh as the science evolves—not through a mess of court cases in thousands of jurisdictions across the country,” said Hedren. “Businesses across the country need commonsense liability protections that depend on adherence to safety standards, promote certainty and strengthen their ability to serve their community and the country.”
Related
Manufacturers Unveil Competitiveness Agenda Ahead of Midterm Elections
“Competing to Win” offers a path for bringing the country together around policies, shared values and a unified purpose
Washington, D.C. – Ahead of the midterm elections, the National Association of Manufacturers released its policy roadmap, “Competing to Win,” a comprehensive blueprint featuring immediate solutions for bolstering manufacturers’ competitiveness. It is also a roadmap for policymakers on the laws and regulations needed to strengthen the manufacturing industry in the months and years ahead.
With the country facing rising prices, snarled supply chains and geopolitical turmoil, manufacturers are outlining an actionable competitiveness agenda that Americans across the political spectrum can support. “Competing to Win” includes the policies manufacturers in America will need in place to continue driving the country forward.
“‘Competing to Win’ offers a path for bringing our country together around policies, shared values and a unified purpose,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons. “The NAM is putting forward a plan filled with ideas that policymakers could pursue immediately, including solutions to urgent problems, such as energy security, immigration reform, supply chain disruptions, the ongoing workforce shortage and more. Manufacturers have shown incredible resilience through difficult times, employing more workers now than before the pandemic, but continued resilience is not guaranteed without the policies that are critical to the state of manufacturing in America.”
The NAM and its members will leverage “Competing to Win” to shape policy debates ahead of the midterm elections, in the remainder of the 117th Congress and at the start of the 118th Congress—including in direct engagement with lawmakers, for grassroots activity, across traditional and digital media and through events in key states and districts as we did following the initial rollout of the roadmap in 2016.
The document focuses on 12 areas of action, and all policies are rooted in the values that have made America exceptional and keep manufacturing strong: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.
Learn more about how manufacturers are leading and about the industry’s competitiveness agenda at nam.org/competing-to-win.
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The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.8 million men and women, contributes $2.77 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 58% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org
