ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 17, 1996 TAG: 9603190055
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: The New York Times
President Clinton said Saturday that if Congress approved pending legislation to limit damage awards in lawsuits involving faulty products, he would veto the measure because it did not provide enough protection for consumers.
In breaking a yearlong silence on the issue, Clinton appeared to deal a crippling blow to a largely Republican-inspired effort to overhaul the nation's civil litigation system and aid the business community.
Clinton's statement that the bill as currently written would put consumers at a disadvantage comes just two days before a crucial vote in the Senate. Supporters of the measure have been working to preserve a fragile coalition with a razor-thin margin to approve the bill.
At the same time, the bill's opponents, a coalition of trial lawyers and consumer groups, have been pressing the White House and some wavering senators.
The White House statement said Clinton believed that the bill, as drafted, ``would unfairly tilt the playing field to the disadvantage of consumers'' and be an unwarranted intrusion into a field of law traditionally reserved to the states.
``In this bill Congress has intruded on state power, and done so in a way that peculiarly disadvantages consumers,'' Clinton said in a letter to congressional leaders.
The measure would cover product liability lawsuits in all federal and state courts.
The bill, as drafted, would limit punitive damages in lawsuits involving dangerous products, a category that would cover such diverse items as toasters that explode, respirators that malfunction or cars that have dangerous design flaws.
Anyone who sued successfully under the law could be compensated for his actual damages, typically medical expenses and lost wages and any damaged property. Punitive damages, which are awarded by juries in cases of egregious misconduct, would be limited in most cases to $250,000 or two times actual damages, whichever is greater.
Saturday's statement also puts Clinton in direct conflict on the issue with Sen. Bob Dole, the majority leader and likely Republican presidential nominee. Dole had earlier tried and failed to enact even broader legislation to limit punitive damages in all civil lawsuits, not just those involving faulty products.
LENGTH: Medium: 53 linesby CNB