LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

BESE official seeks locals input

Dear Residents of BESE District 3, Thank you for electing me to serve as your next BESE District 3 member. It is nothing short of an honor and privilege and I am grateful to have this opportunity As a new member of the BESE Board, I am eager to partner with you as a community and with my colleagues on the board to create an environment that propels our children to achieve their greatest educational potential.

While we know our state, students, parents and educators face many challenges, I am certain they can be overcome through our working together to make things right for students. Our children deserve a quality education and they are absolutely worth fighting for. I will do my best to maintain your trust and respect as I consistently vote to put kids first during my service on the BESE Board.

Your input is very valuable to me as I make sure that Louisiana continues to be a state where people choose to live, work, and raise their families. That is why we – BESE Board Members and concerned citizens – must continue on the path of preparing our most valuable resources-our children-to be college, career and life ready.

Again, thank you for electing me and allowing me to represent you on the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE). I will work hard to make our state’s education system serve students, parents, and teachers and be the pathway to success that it was created to be.

Sandy HollowayBESE District 3

Louisiana slips further in ‘Judicial Hellholes’ ranking

Dear Editor,

The Pelican State has once again been named one of the worst places in the nation to be sued. This year, the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) singled out Louisiana as the No. 6 worst “judicial hellhole” in the country because of imbalanced courts and excessive litigation.

ATRA’s report defines “judicial hellholes” as jurisdictions in which “judges in civil cases systematically apply laws and court procedures in an unfair and unbalanced manner.” The goal is to “shine a light on imbalances in the courts and thereby encourage positive changes by the judges themselves and, when needed, through legislative action or the ballot box.” Louisiana has been featured in the annual report since it was first published in 2002.

These sentiments have been echoed by numerous other organizations as well. Recently, the Center for Public Integrity gave Louisiana an “F” for judicial accountability on its Corruption Risk Report Card, while the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform ranked Louisiana’s lawsuit climate 49th in the nation, a rating that is far below every one of our bordering states including: Arkansas (41), Mississippi (43) and Texas (40). Clearly, there’s a pattern here.

Louisiana’s latest ranking in the Judicial Hellholes report is a timely reminder to the incoming administration and new lawmakers that we have some serious work to

do to improve our state’s hostile legal climate if we want to truly compete in the global marketplace.

As low oil and gas prices threaten Louisiana’s economy, improving the state’s litigation environment is more important now than ever before. In contrast to tax credits and exemptions, legal reform is one of the few ways we can attract more jobs and businesses, and it doesn’t cost the state anything. All we need is the political will to make significant changes to ensure that every citizen has access to fair and impartial courts.

One area that’s particularly ripe for reform is the excessively high threshold for jury trials in Louisiana. Currently, the state’s $50,000 barrier for obtaining a jury trial allows elected judges to decide the outcome of the majority of small civil lawsuits. This process puts a lot of power in the hands of judges, who receive substantial campaign donations from personal injury lawyers, and it takes our citizens out of the process.

Other major reforms lawmakers should consider include: amendments to state venue laws to preclude lawyers from unreasonable forum shopping in Louisiana courts; improvements to the regulatory process for handling environmental lawsuits to discourage the filing of frivolous claims; and transparency bills to ensure that members of the state judiciary are more accountable to taxpayers.

By making lawsuit reform a top priority in 2016, Louisiana can clean up its courts and shed its troubled legal reputation once and for all.

Melissa Landry

Executive Director, Lawsuit Abuse Watch