HARRISBURG, Pa., July 16, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Business and community leaders today strongly criticized a response brief filed by attorneys for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the PennDOT case now before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
"The Commonwealth's out-of-state attorneys completely missed the important points of Pennsylvania law and policy raised by our organization and many others when we filed our amicus curiae briefs in May," said Maura Donley, Vice President, Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry. "They simply restated their original arguments, which were flawed to begin with."
In early May, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, Pennsylvania Chemical Industry Council, Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association and the National Association of Manufacturers joined with more than 40 Pennsylvania legislators in calling upon the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to reverse a lower court ruling that could have devastating impacts on the way business is done in the Commonwealth. Adding their voices of support were the American Chemistry Council, National Federation of Independent Business Legal Foundation, National Black Chamber of Commerce and Pennsylvania Defense Institute.
The lower court ruling arose out of a case involving the demolition and reconstruction of the Commonwealth's Transportation and Safety Building in Harrisburg. After a catastrophic fire damaged the building in 1994, due in part to the outdated structure's lack of a sprinkler system, the Commonwealth demanded that Monsanto pay the entire cost of its demolition and replacement based on the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at minute levels below all health standards.
In filing a "friend of the court" brief, the business organizations asked the Supreme Court to overturn the 2002 verdict because the trial court's ruling vastly expanded several key areas of products liability law in an improper manner.
In another brief filed on behalf of the Pennsylvania Defense Institute, James A. Henderson Jr. and Aaron Twerski, the nation's leading legal scholars in the field of products liability, stated, "We are struck by the total failure of the (lower) court to address fundamental elements of a products liability action in deciding this case. It is as though the law ... were beside the point."
Donley added that if the court's imposition of the concept of absolute liability were allowed to stand, the result would be "severe, adverse economic consequences for a wide range of manufacturers, consumers and all Pennsylvanians, from increased product and insurance costs to stifled innovation to actual disincentives for improved safety efforts."
"This would further competitively disadvantage the state with respect to its economic policies on business growth and development," continued Donley. "There also would be profound effects on residents and those working in the state in the form of lower wages, reduced employment opportunities and increased job terminations due to bankruptcies."
Harry Alford, president of the National Black Chamber of Commerce, and a leading advocate for small business nationwide, said, "Small business is the backbone of our economy, particularly in these challenging economic times. Our Pennsylvania members will be dramatically affected by the financial burdens imposed by the Commonwealth's position in this case. Jobs will be lost, and productivity will be adversely affected due to increased insurance costs."
"We believe the Supreme Court should expedite its review of this case and take action as soon as possible to return some reason to our tort system," concluded Donley.
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