Full story in the Tampa Bay Business Journal

By Tom Gaitens

The American Tort Reform Association has issued a serious warning about the direction the Florida House of Representatives is trying to take the state.

In its recently released 2025 Legislative HeatCheck Report, ATRA labeled the Florida House a “lawsuit inferno” for pushing bills that threaten to unravel the landmark 2023 tort reform package.

These reforms, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023, restored balance and fairness to Florida’s courts after years of abuse by lawsuit-driven profiteering and helped shed Florida’s long-standing designation as a “judicial hellhole.”

Recently lauded by the Wall Street Journal editorial board, DeSantis’ reform measures have attracted 11 new insurance carriers to the Florida markets, shifted roughly 477,000 policies from the state-run Citizens Property Insurance to private carriers, and spurred rate cuts across the board.

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Other proposed rollbacks included HB 947, which sought to allow juries to consider inflated “sticker prices” for medical treatments, rather than actual costs — artificially driving up damage awards. HB 1551 attempted to reinstate one-way attorney’s fees, a system that incentivizes lawsuits by guaranteeing plaintiffs’ lawyers are paid regardless of the case’s merit. HB 1181, another high-risk bill, proposed eliminating Florida’s no-fault auto insurance system, potentially overwhelming courts with more accident-related lawsuits.

Together, these legislative proposals risked undoing these hard-fought reforms, setting the stage for a surge in costly litigation and increased premiums that would hit Floridians’ wallets hard.

The economic consequences of returning to a litigious environment would be detrimental. According to CALA’s annual economic impact report, the average Floridian pays a “tort tax” of $1,238 per year and over $4,900 for every Florida family. In South Florida, that figure jumps to $2,143 per resident. Worse still, lawsuit abuse costs Florida’s government $1.2 billion in lost annual revenue and contributes to job losses exceeding 67,000, particularly in logistics and agriculture. Despite the clear risks, some lawmakers continue pushing policies that would drag Florida backward.

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The message from ATRA and business leaders is clear: “Florida cannot afford to backslide.” Maintaining a fair and balanced legal system is not just about protecting corporations; it is about lowering consumer costs, attracting investment, reducing insurance premiums and preserving jobs.

Undoing tort reform would return Florida to an era of lawsuit abuse and economic instability. The reforms of 2023 must stand, not just for businesses, but for the future of every Floridian.