Businesses Fear Virus-Related Lawsuits | Eastern North Carolina Now

Nihal Krishan of the Washington Examiner details one of the business community’s top concerns about COVID-19.

ENCNow
Publisher's note: The author of this post is Mitch Kokai for the John Locke Foundation.

    Nihal Krishan of the Washington Examiner details one of the business community's top concerns about COVID-19. It involves the threat of legal action.

  • Business groups say that the fear of a flood of unfair coronavirus lawsuits hurting businesses is real despite data showing that not many such lawsuits have been filed yet.
  • More than 3,700 coronavirus-related lawsuits have been filed since March, but just 185, or less than 5% of the total, are plaintiffs claiming potential exposure to the virus from a business or other entities, according to an analysis by the American Association for Justice, which represents trial lawyers.
  • The analysis suggests that the rate of lawsuits being filed against businesses for potential exposure to the virus are relatively low and buttress the association's argument that Republicans' push for coronavirus-related liability protections for businesses and other entities such as schools and nonprofit groups is misguided.
  • Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said shielding business owners from coronavirus-related lawsuits is a "red line" in future spending negotiations with Democrats. Republicans are worried that the economic recovery could slow without such protections because of the fear of businesses being unfairly sued in the coming months, even if they do their best to follow coronavirus safety protocols.
  • House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, on the other hand, have said Democrats won't support the business liability protections, with Pelosi saying in May that their priority is to "protect our workers and our patients in all of this."
  • But business groups such as the Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers say that the number of claims will grow.
  • "Their argument is a red herring. Employers need protections before a potentially crippling lawsuit has been filed against them, not after," said Harold Kim, president of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform.

Go Back


Leave a Guest Comment

Your Name or Alias
Your Email Address ( your email address will not be published)
Enter Your Comment ( no code or urls allowed, text only please )




Wake County Property Owner Challenges Eminent Domain Power John Locke Foundation Guest Editorial, Editorials, Op-Ed & Politics The Next Federal COVID-19 Relief Package Explored


HbAD0

Latest Op-Ed & Politics

Vice President Kamala Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, admitted that he cheated on his first wife with the couple’s babysitter after a report was published on Saturday that said the marriage ended after he got the babysitter pregnant.
A black Georgia activist became the center of attention at a rally for former president Donald Trump on Saturday when she riled the crowd in support of Trump and how his policies benefit black Americans.
Former President has been indicted by a federal judge in Pennsylvania for inciting an assassination attempt that nearly killed him.
A federal judge ruled on Monday that Google has a monopoly over general search engine services, siding with the Justice Department and more than two dozen states that sued the tech company, alleging antitrust violations.
3 debates and Twitter interview
If we vote the way we have always voted we will get the kind of government we have always gotten
Check it out and see if you think this is an exhibit of Open Government

HbAD1

Acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe told reporters on Friday that his agency was fully responsible for the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump last month and that the agency “should have had eyes” on the roof where 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks.
Smartmatic was at center of voting machine controversy in US 2020 election
If we vote the way we have always voted we will get the kind of government we have always gotten
Shooter was identified on the roof with a weapon with enough time to stop him...but, officers were not prepared to access the roof

HbAD2

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris faced backlash Thursday afternoon over what they told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a call.
while Biden-Harris tries to force it down the throat of American schools
blasts what Democrat supermajority is doing to the state
RALEIGH: Tropical Storm Debby continues to bring heavy rain and flooding across North Carolina on Thursday.
The bomb that killed Ismail Haniyeh, the top leader of Hamas, in Iran early Wednesday was planted several weeks ago, according to a new report.
opens Minnesota to child genital multiation and pedophilia; will seek same in nation

HbAD3

 
Back to Top