WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Artur Davis voted in favor of a bipartisan bill that will streamline the complex maze of class action litigation.  The bill, which won overwhelming approval in the House and Senate, creates clearer standards for which class actions must be filed and which should be removed to federal court.

Davis noted that “this bill is not perfect, but it is a dramatic improvement over the class action bill that I opposed two years ago – unlike the earlier version it allows cases that primarily affects one states laws and citizens to be decided in that state’s court.  The bill will assign to federal courts only those cases that are national in scope or that implicate the laws of multiple states.  This new law represents good common sense reform.”

Davis emphasizes that he continues to oppose efforts by the Bush administration to arbitrarily limit jury verdicts in medical malpractice cases, and that he will also vote against efforts to bar asbestos claimants from exercising their right to go to court.

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