On March 22, 2012, the U.S. House passed a measure to limit attorney fees in medical malpractice cases.  The legislation, H.R. 5 (pdf), passed on a largely partisan 223-181 vote.  In addition to limiting contingency fees for lawyers, the legislation would cap awards in medical malpractice claims for pain and suffering at $250,000 in most states.

“Republicans say they support our free enterprise system, yet they want to limit what attorneys can earn in medical tort cases,” says Terry Jesse, Executive Director of NALFA.  “We are opposed to legislative efforts to cap attorney fee awards in tort cases.  In our civil justice system, judges should determine reasonable fee awards, not politicians,” Jesse concluded.