It is difficult to know what to make of recent attacks on Texans for Lawsuit Reform by Daniel Greer at AgendaWise, a group that claims to be conservative. Greer makes the astonishing charge that TLR, which played a key role in the defeat of nineteen incumbents in the 2010 election cycle, is somehow a “champion of the status quo.” Ask any of those liberal anti-tort reform former-legislators if they think TLR is a “champion of the status quo.” In the upcoming Republican primary, TLR is backing challengers to two entrenched Republicans – a veteran senator in San Antonio and a long serving House member in East Texas -- because they have worked against the lawsuit reforms we are committed to maintaining. Those races will be two of the most hotly contested battles in the state and TLR is again leading the charge against the forces of the status quo.

Greer’s allegations regarding public policy are equally absurd and echo everyday trial lawyer spin. He says TLR has “bravely slayed the dragon” of lawsuit abuse and no longer has a reason to exist.

Did Greer miss the last Legislative Session where some of the most grueling tort reform battles in TLR’s history were fought? Is he unaware that Steve Mostyn, who poured ten million dollars into the campaigns of liberal Democrats in 2010, was in the Capitol virtually every day bullying lawmakers and fighting reform of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA)? Mostyn, of course, has made millions from TWIA, as did many other trial lawyers including State Rep. Craig Eiland, (D-Galveston) who joined with trial lawyer lawmakers like Trey Martinez-Fischer (D-San Antonio) to fight brutally to stop the Legislature from shutting down their gravy train.

If trial lawyers have been defeated, as Greer says, someone should inform Mostyn, Lisa Baron, John Eddie Williams, Walter Umphrey, Nelson Roach, Harold Nix, Mikal Watts and a few other mega-wealthy trial lawyers whose combined 2010 campaign contributions totaled about $16 million dollars. That’s more than any other business, industry or profession in Texas and about the same amount TLR PAC and all its allies spent.

It was only one session ago, when buoyed by the Democratic victories in 2008, trial lawyers pushed hundreds of bills that would have rolled back existing tort reforms, created new opportunities to sue or overturned rightly decided opinions by our conservative Supreme Court. Even last year, with solid conservative majorities, pro-trial lawyer legislation was introduced that would have shifted the balance of our courts and created new windfalls for trial lawyers.

In addition to unlimited funds and trial lawyer legislators who put their financial interests first on the floor of the House and Senate, Texas trial lawyers have other substantial advantages in the fight against tort reform. First, they control their own political party. The Texas Democratic Party gets 86% of its funding trial lawyers. They also control the local Democratic Party apparatus in the urban counties and most of South Texas.

Trial lawyers also have a far more effective message machine and it’s not just the left-leaning press. In addition to the Texas Democratic Party, Texans for Public Justice, Texas Watch, Texas First and the Lone Star Project are bought and paid for by trial lawyers and they collaborate to push a relentless and orchestrated message against tort reform and conservative principles. Their guns are all aimed at TLR. Their counterparts on the conservative side don’t shoot back. Instead, these days, they seem to be saving their shots for each other.

Trial lawyers would love for conservatives to believe that the trial lawyer dragon has been slain and that tort reform is no longer an issue, but that thinking is dangerously foolish for any serious Texas conservative. While it is true that the primary focus of the trial lawyer agenda is to pass legislation that benefits them financially, in fact, they back candidates who are big-spending, anti-business liberals. If TLR doesn’t fight trial lawyer legislation, who will? If TLR doesn’t defeat trial lawyer candidates, who will?

Sherry Sylvester is the spokesperson for Texans for Lawsuit Reform.