Originally Published MX March/April 2003

GOVERNMENTAL & LEGAL AFFAIRS

Product liability hot spots have a geographic as well as technological dimension. The American Tort Reform Association cites the following areas as "tort hellholes."

• Alameda County, CA (including Oakland, Berkeley).
• Los Angeles County, CA (particularly the Civil Central West Division).
• San Francisco County, CA.
• Madison County, IL (across the river from St. Louis, MO).
• Orleans Parish, LA (New Orleans).
• Mississippi's 22nd Judicial District (the Gulf Coast).
• St. Louis, MO.
• Hidalgo County, TX (southern Rio Grande Valley).
• Jefferson County, TX (including Beaumont, Port Arthur).
• Nueces County, TX (including Corpus Christi).
• Starr County, TX (southern Rio Grande Valley).

Regardless of where a company's manufacturing facility is located, medical products in the stream of commerce may provoke claims elsewhere than their birthplace. If a claim arises in one of the 11 areas listed, the defendant should weigh the jury risk and proceed with caution.

Copyright ©2003 MX