August 12, 2004
A poll conducted by the American Bar Association shows that contrary to the conventional wisdom, the American public has faith in the jury system. Not only does the poll reveal that the public prefers juries to judges as the fact finder, but that the public does not find jury duty to be a burden to be avoided.
In other news, a jury in Massachusetts awarded $1 million to the family of a cancer victim, against an HMO doctor who refused to order clearly necessary tests because the HMO provided the doctor with a financial incentive to not order tests. Source: Boston Herald (may require subscription to access article)
Lawmakers should keep this news in mind as they get pressured to enact medical malpractice caps. Caps on non-economic or non-pecuniary damages strip juries of their power to find facts, e.g., the amount of money necessary to compensate a victim for their injuries, or in the case of punitive damages, the amount necessary to punish the defendant.
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