In Their Own Words: TLR on Judicial Selection

View the TLR Document on Judicial Selection HERE

View TXIR’s report on TLR’s legislative advocacy HERE

Austin, TX- Texans for Individual Rights (TXIR), a conservative public policy organization, today published a document produced by the self-styled “Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR)” encouraging Texas legislators to take away the right of Texans to elect their judges.

The document is part of a legislative briefing book that was distributed to members of the Texas legislature in January of this year. The document can be viewed at TXIR’s website, www.txir.org.

“Almost two weeks ago TXIR released an eye-opening report taking a closer look at TLR’s legislative activities. This generated an overwhelming response from grassroots activists who had no idea what TLR actually lobbied for and previously believed that TLR was committed to advancing ideologically conservative principles.” said Mark McCaig, President of Texans for Individual Rights. “Since TLR is unwilling to post information on their website regarding their belief that Texan voters are not capable of electing good judges, we have decided to post their own materials on judicial selection, unedited, on our website.”

McCaig continued, “We hope by making this information readily available to the public, Texas voters will take a closer look at TLR’s true motives and special interest agenda.”

A copy of the TXIR report on TLR’s lobbying activities during the 80th Texas Legislature can be viewed online at www.therealtlr.com.

Texans for Individual Rights Releases Report Examining the Real Legislative Agenda of “Texans for Lawsuit Reform”

VIEW THE REPORT HERE

Austin, TX- Texans for Individual Rights (TXIR), a conservative public policy organization, today released an in-depth report examining the legislative advocacy of Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR) during the 80th session of the Texas Legislature.

The report examines a number of bills that TLR lobbied for and against in committee hearings during the course of the session. Bills supported by TLR include SB 1204, which would have given a panel appointed by the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court the authority to deem cases “complex” and to remove locally elected trial judges from such cases, and HB 1927, which would have made oil, gas, and chemical companies immune from being held accountable for damages caused by fuels and fuel additives if their products met certain governmental regulations.

TLR opposed legislation that would have strengthened the ability of the Texas Residential Construction Commission to hold unscrupulous homebuilders responsible for building defective homes, increased consumer protections in insurance contracts, and that would have protected the rights of victims of drunk driving.

“While the self-styled Texans for Lawsuit Reform claim to be lobbying for legislation that protects the rights of Texans, all they really seem to care about is protecting the pocketbooks of their donors.” said Mark McCaig, President of Texans for Individual Rights.

A copy of the report can be viewed online at www.therealtlr.com.

Over 90% of TLR PAC Contributions Come From Just 6 Donors

Austin, TX- Campaign finance reports filed this week by Texans for Lawsuit Reform reveal that that more than 90% of the contributions to their political action committee came from just six donors. Additionally, these reports reveal that nearly 40% of contributions to the TLR PAC during the reporting period came from homebuilders. Major donors include Houston Texans owner Bob McNair ($250,000 donated on 6/11/07), homebuilder Bob Perry ($250,000 donated on 6/29/07), oilman Boone Pickens ($250,000 donated on 4/5/07), investor Jeff Sandefer ($25,000 donated on 3/5/07), businessman Harold Simmons ($50,000 donated on 2/6/07), and homebuilder Dick Weekley ($150,000 donated on 5/22/07).

Mark McCaig, President of Texans for Individual Rights, stated “While Texans for Lawsuit Reform claims to be a grassroots organization with over 15,000 members, their campaign finance reports show them to be nothing more than a front group for a small group of wealthy businessmen.”

The expenditures of the TLR PAC show several contributions to members of the Texas Supreme Court, including a $5,000 donation to Justice Don Willett, who recently authored the court’s opinion in the case of Fortis Benefits v. Cantu. This decision overturned 27 years of established case law that required injured policyholders to be “made whole” before insurance companies could recover any portion of a settlement or verdict.

“While there is nothing wrong with businesses or individuals promoting their personal agendas before the state legislature, they should do so honestly”, McCaig added. “TLR’s policy agenda, which includes taking away the right of Texans to elect their judges and protecting negligent liquor store owners from being held accountable when they serve intoxicated customers, is not reflective of the views of ordinary citizens. We urge Texans for Lawsuit Reform to end their fraudulent claims of being a grassroots organization and to stop lying to Texas voters about who they really represent.”

Texans for Individual Rights is a conservative, non-partisan organization dedicated to the protection of personal liberty, individuals’ access to the civil justice system, and private property rights. For more information about TXIR, please visit www.txir.org.

TLR Myths & Facts, Vol. 1

This is the first in a series of posts dispelling myths many conservatives have about Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR).

MYTH: Texans for Lawsuit Reform is a conservative organization.

FACT: Texans for Lawsuit Reform has no ideology. They are a special interest group that supports candidates and officeholders who will promote or support their agenda, regardless of their ideology. In fact, TLR’s political action committee has endorsed and funded liberal democrats who were running against more conservative republican candidates in a number of very competitive legislative races.

MYTH: Texans for Lawsuit Reform exists to reduce the number of frivolous lawsuits in our courts.

FACT: Judges already have the ability under Texas law to throw out cases that are without merit and to impose sanctions on attorneys and litigants who are responsible for filing frivolous pleadings. The policies advocated by TLR and their allies have nothing to do with reducing frivolous lawsuits. Instead, they seek to limit the ability of individuals with legitimate claims from accessing the civil justice system to seek compensation from those responsible for causing the injury (or, in many cases, the insurance company of the responsible party).

MYTH: Texans for Lawsuit Reform is supported by a diverse group of thousands of ordinary Texans who come from different backgrounds.

FACT: The vast majority of contributions made to TLR’s political action committee come from a small number of wealthy business owners who benefit financially from the public policy advocated by TLR. For example, homebuilders Bob Perry and Dick Weekly have both donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the TLR PAC over the past several years.

Texans for Individual Rights Launches “The Real TLR”

Austin, TX- Conservative public advocacy organization Texans for Individual Rights today announced the launch of “The Real TLR”, an internet based project tracking the activities and influence of Texans for Lawsuit Reform and other similar special interest groups. The Real TLR website, which will be updated frequently, can be viewed at www.therealtlr.com.

Mark McCaig, President of Texans for Individual Rights stated, “For too long, Texans for Lawsuit Reform and their allies in the business lobby have fooled many grassroots conservatives into believing that their organizations are promoting an ideologically conservative agenda. The goal of “The Real TLR” is to show these conservative voters that TLR’s agenda is designed to promote the personal financial interests of their backers, not the interests of average Texans. We also intend on showing how the business lobby has actively lobbied against issues such as meaningful tax reform and crackdowns on illegal immigration that are important to the grassroots.”

McCaig continued, “TLR is the one of the best funded and most influential groups in Austin, spending millions of dollars a year on lobbying, public relations activities, and campaign contributions to advance their special interest agenda. The Real TLR will be an important resource in letting Texans know the truth behind the spin.”

Texans for Individual Rights is a conservative, non-partisan organization dedicated to the protection of personal liberty, individuals’ access to the civil justice system, and private property rights. For more information about TXIR, please visit www.txir.org.