Product Liability and Mass Torts

Legislation Impact Analysis

Legislation Impact Analysis

Claim filing rates in product liability cases are a function of economic and behavioral factors. For example, filing rates increase with higher claim values and decrease when individuals believe they bear some of the blame for the injury. The litigation environment will affect these factors, and hence, a plaintiff’s decision to bring a claim, the jurisdiction within which a claim is filed, and the value of claims filed.

NERA's experts track changes in the mass torts litigation environment both nationally and by state. We have observed that past tort reforms have affected filings rates (e.g., the barring of out-of-state claims in Mississippi led to a drop in in-state filings); and conversely, that high levels of claim filings can lead to tort reforms.
 
In forecasting claims or liabilities, our experts incorporate information on changes in the litigation environment, such as tort reform, to forecast how such reforms will affect filings rates or settlement dollars.

Name Title Location Phone Email
Lucy P. Allen Senior Managing Director New York City +1 212 345 5913 lucy.allen@nera.com
Dr. Denise Neumann Martin Senior Managing Director Miami +1 305 808 7880 denise.martin@nera.com
Dr. Faten Sabry Senior Managing Director
Chair of NERA's Global Securities and Finance Practice
Bankruptcy Practice Chair
New York City
London
+1 212 345 3285
+44 20 7659 8618
faten.sabry@nera.com
Mary Elizabeth C. Stern Managing Director White Plains, NY +1 914 448 4054 mary.elizabeth.stern@nera.com
Janeen McIntosh Senior Consultant New York City +1 212 345 1375 janeen.mcintosh@nera.com
Title Type Author
Snapshot of Recent Trends in Asbestos Litigation: 2022 Update White Paper Mary Elizabeth Stern and Lucy Allen
Snapshot of Recent Trends in Asbestos Litigation 2021 Update Mary Elizabeth C. Stern and Lucy P. Allen
The Role of Punitive Damages in Asbestos Litigation Published Article Faten Sabry and Sungi Lee, et al.
Snapshot of Recent Trends in Asbestos Litigation: 2020 Update Report Mary Elizabeth C. Stern and Lucy P. Allen
Hey Google: When Did People Stop Going to Work? White Paper Dr. Faten Sabry, Linh Nguyen, and Aakash Bhalothia
Snapshot of Recent Trends in Asbestos Litigation: 2018 Update White Paper Mary Elizabeth C. Stern and Lucy P. Allen
Snapshot of Recent Trends in Asbestos Litigation: 2017 Update Report Mary Elizabeth C. Stern and Lucy P. Allen
Asbestos: Economic Assessment of Bans and Declining Production and Consumption Report Lucy P. Allen, Mary Elizabeth C. Stern, Jorge Baez, and Frank George
Institutional Response to Tort System Breakdown: Asbestos Enters a New Phase Working Paper By Dr. Faten Sabry and Mary Elizabeth Stern with former NERA Senior Vice President Dr. Fred Dunbar
Costs of Asbestos Litigation and Benefits of Reform Study Dr. Denise Martin, Dr. Faten Sabry, and Dr. Stephanie Plancich et al.