IL-6: GOP Tort Reform Hypocrisy

Illinois Republican Peter Roskam is running against Democrat Tammy Duckworth to replace 16-term Republican Rep. Henry J. Hyde in Congress. Peter Roskam, a former Tom Delay aid, is a typical rubber stamp Bush Republican.

As a typical Republican, Peter Roskam supports tort reform.

Roskam has named lawsuit reform as a top priority.

"I will vote to pass lawsuit reform in Congress," said Roskam. "Illinois is a crisis state and doctors are leaving our state because of frivolous lawsuits."

Roskam has been endorsed by the American Medical Association, American Hospital Association and several specialty medical associations.

Typical conservative pandering rather than actually solving the problem of doctors leaving. Like many other Conservative cause there is a heavy does of hypocrisy put forth by Republican politicians. Peter Roskam is a partner in law firm of Salvi, Roskam & Maher. Yes, Peter Roskam is a one of the evil personal injury lawyers that earn $615,000 last year only from his work. The Republican area of expertise is in the following:

Automobile Accidents and Injuries; Construction; Premises Liability; Products Liability; Slip and Fall; Dog Bites; Medical Malpractice; Personal Injury; Accidents; Automobile Negligence; Bicycle Accidents; Boating Accidents; Bodily Injury; Catastrophic Injury; Motor Vehicle Accidents and Injuries; Motorcycle Accidents; Pedestrian Injuries; Wrongful Death

Dog Bites, Slip and Fall?

Republicans frequently invoke the scary image of predatory lawyers who take out full-page "We get results!" ads in the Yellow Pages; lawyers who beckon victims of "slip and fall injuries, medical negligence ... dog-bite injuries, wrongful death [and] defective products" to "put our experience to work for you. ... No fee unless you collect."

Lawyers like--boo!--Peter Roskam.

I borrowed the above verbiage from an ad for Salvi, Roskam & Maher, a Wheaton personal-injury firm and proud member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, a national organization of attorneys "who have won million and multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements."

If Peter Roskam is really against frivolous lawsuits let the people look over his full list of his clients.

We believe the real problem in the system is frivolous lawsuits like those that Peter Roskam solicits in his Yellow Pages ads," said Duckworth campaign manager Jon Carson, whose camp provided the images of the ads. "We need to look for ways to stop these lawsuits on the front end, maybe by setting standards for the advertising."

Carson called upon Roskam to release a full list of his clients "so we can see what role he has or hasn't played in the reduction of frivolous suits."

Roskam spokesman Ryan McLaughlin branded Duckworth's line of attack as "dirty politics" and said that, "bottom line, groups that support lawsuit reform support Peter Roskam. ... Yeah, he's an attorney, but [as a state legislator] he has never voted against reform."

Instead Illinois State Senator Peter Roskam and this Republican business partner stated a PAC called Sir Thomas More Justice League to raise money from trial attorney to stop tort reform. Under Republican pressure Peter Roskam did not vote against tort reform rather he voted “present” and returned the PAC money.

Peter Roskam will fit right in with Republican Clowns in Congress. Lets send Tammy Duckworth rather than a Bush Republican.