Business Week Magazine Addresses Federal Preemption Concern

Following up on my comments last week about the issue of federal preemption and how our right to jury trial is up for grabs, an article appeared in Business Week yesterday addressing these same concerns. An interesting take Business Week has on this issue is from Attorney Generals (AGs) from 26 states who wrote a letter to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), the federal governing body for cars, requesting NHTSA drop the lawsuit protection (preemption) from the new rules for rollover protection that manufacturers have to comply with when designing cars. In the letter the AGs stated “State governments and the federal government will have to cover millions of dollars in healthcare costs which they will pass along to taxpayers, costs that, by all rights, should be the responsibility of the manufacturers.” Basically, the only ones who win in this battle is Corporate America. There is something wrong in our system when those responsible do not have to step up to the plate and pay for their wrongdoing. Our governmental system is one of checks and balances and this is one check we can not afford to let pass.