Edwards and Malpractice... need debunking links...

[Rosco T.]

arguing the 'trial lawyer' thing again and that Edwards make money off the misery of others.

need links to the accomplishments and benefits he's done.

[Catch22Dem]

1. Don't ALL lawyers make money off the misery of others?

I mean, how else are they supposed to get paid?

[spooky3]

2. not exactly what you are seeking, but

1. Tell the doubter to buy and read "Four Trials." It is compelling.
2. Summary sketch of his plan for addressing the malpractice issues:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A13116-2003May19

First, his definition of the REAL problems, followed by solutions:

"Unfortunately, President Bush's proposed prescription comes straight off the insurance companies' wish list: a sharp limit on the compensation these companies have to pay children and parents who have been blinded, paralyzed or otherwise severely injured. The victims who make the least money will suffer the most under this plan. The harm to the kinds of families I represented as a lawyer for nearly 20 years will be enormous.

What the president's proposal won't do is work. Insurance premiums have spiked recently because of insurance companies' losses on their investments, not their losses to victims. In fact, about half the states already have some limits on victim compensation, yet premiums in states with caps average about the same as premiums in states without caps. California finally controlled rates not by attacking victims -- that didn't work -- but by reforming the insurance industry and rolling back premium increases."

snip

" That real solution has three elements. Most important, we need to crack down on price gouging by the industry. We also need aggressive action against frivolous lawsuits that don't belong in court -- not against the serious lawsuits that bring help to the most badly injured. And finally, we need to reduce the number of medical errors, many made by a very small fraction of the medical profession.

The most critical step is reforming the insurance industry. Today insurance companies use slow and burdensome processes to discourage both doctors and patients from filing legitimate claims. Worse still, these companies can fix prices and divvy up the country in order to drive up their profits. Even when companies don't explicitly collude, they set their rates based on a trade-group loss calculation that they know other companies will follow. In any other industry, this kind of conduct would be subject to scrutiny under the antitrust laws. But an obscure 1945 law gives insurance companies a broad antitrust exemption. Because of the insurance lobby's influence, Congress has even blocked the Federal Trade Commission from investigating insurance company rip-offs. These special privileges must go."

snip