The following letter to the editor was published in the February issue of Texas Monthly.

DOLLARS AND SENSE

Mimi Swartz has a blind spot when it comes to personal injury trial lawyers that has caused her to misdiagnose what ails the Texas Democratic party. Contrary to Swartz’s “Left Behind” column, trial lawyers’ giving to Democratic candidates has continued to rise over the last decade despite the passage of tort reform in Texas [Behind the Lines, November 2011]. A quick check of campaign finance reports shows that in the past three election cycles, trial lawyer campaign contributions matched the combined contributions of their opponents, which includes every other business, industry, and profession in the state. In 2010, for example, the top ten trial lawyer contributors and the top ten tort reform contributors both gave about $16 million.

But Swartz is right that tort reform has had a significant negative impact on the Texas Democratic party. The Democrats’ almost exclusive reliance on trial lawyer money to fund their campaigns makes them suspect to the majority of Texas voters in both political parties who support lawsuit reform. This suspicion is confirmed when Democratic leaders make the trial lawyer agenda a priority in the state legislature. Until this changes, Texas Democrats will continue to struggle.

Sherry Sylvester
Texans for Lawsuit Reform
Houston

TLR PAC is the political arm of Texans for Lawsuit Reform, the state's largest civil justice reform organization. TLR is a bipartisan, volunteer-led coalition with more than 17,000 supporters residing in 818 Texas communities and representing 1,266 different businesses, professions and trades. For more information about TLR PAC visit www.tlrpac.com.