ATRA Applauds New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Lawsuit Reforms 

The American Tort Reform Association today commends New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) who signed several lawsuit reforms into law last week, putting into place some of the most significant legal reforms in the Empire State in more than 20 years. 

The measures aim to address auto liability and rampant fraud, highlighted extensively in the American Tort Reform Foundation’s “Judicial Hellholes®” report, that has resulted in New Yorkers paying some of the most expensive auto insurance rates in the country. 

“The liability reforms championed by Gov. Kathy Hochul this year put into place best practices that will help make New York’s liability system less of an outlier and allow fewer opportunities for abuse,” said Lauren Sheets Jarrell, ATRA’s Vice President and Counsel for Civil Justice Policy. “New York has one of the most notoriously abused legal systems in the nation and these measures finally strike at the rampant scams, systemic fraud, and excessive litigation that have driven auto insurance costs sky-high for families struggling to make ends meet.” 

Key auto liability reforms include: 

• Moving from pure to modified comparative fault in motor vehicle claims; 

• Tightening New York’s threshold for “serious injury” by eliminating an injury category often abused by bad actors; 

• Allowing noneconomic damages only in auto claims involving serious injuries; and, 

• Stopping drivers convicted of operating a vehicle while impaired, while committing or fleeing a felony, and uninsured drivers from recovering more than $100,000 in noneconomic damages. 

Key anti-fraud provisions targeting auto and workers’ comp claims include:  

• Cracking down on individuals involved in staged auto accident schemes beyond the driver by deeming it a fraudulent insurance act to hire, request, encourage, orchestrate, or invite another individual to stage a motor vehicle accident; and,  

• Stopping healthcare providers with a history of misconduct from providing care or performing independent medical examinations for workers’ compensation claims by establishing an “exclusion list” of ineligible providers with previous findings of misconduct. 

“These changes improve the legal environment for those who follow the law and create accountability and transparency for unscrupulous billboard attorneys who have exploited hardworking New Yorkers for too long,” Sheets Jarrell said. “People are finally seeing the real cause behind their soaring auto insurance premiums and tracing exactly where the cash from these massive settlements is flowing — into the pockets of lawyers who claim to be ‘for the people.’”  

The Fight Against Judicial Hellhole® Status and Billboard Lawyers’ Cash Flow 

Lawsuit abuse and the “fraudemic” in New York City — ranked the No. 2 Judicial Hellhole® — and across the state has led to some of the nation’s highest auto insurance rates. New York drivers pay approximately $4,000 each year on average for auto insurance premiums — nearly $1,500 above the national average.  

At the same time, spending on trial lawyer advertising in the state surged to nearly $179 million in 2025 — a massive 84% increase since 2023. Out of 1.2 million local legal services ads broadcast last year, a staggering 78% promoted personal injury attorneys, with nearly 300,000 ads specifically targeting motor vehicle and construction site accidents. 

“The massive amounts that trial lawyers spend on ads targeting vulnerable New Yorkers to file unnecessary claims shows how lucrative this industry is for them,” Sheets Jarrell said. “If they’re spending that much on advertising alone, imagine how much they’re making off the backs of hardworking families.” 

The trial bar poured roughly $6.5 million into political campaigns over a recent three-year period while opposing reforms aimed at curbing litigation abuse. Meanwhile, everyday New Yorkers took the hit paying the second-highest “tort tax” in the nation, at $2,684 per person annually due to excessive litigation — up 43% since 2022. 

“We are grateful to Gov. Hochul for taking critical strides to make her state more fair and affordable for hard-working families, but there is still work to be done in the fight against  billboard lawyers who are accustomed to being the ‘top dogs,’” Sheets Jarrell said. “While the courts must now enforce these changes, New York’s liability woes are multifaceted.” 

Courts across the state and particularly in New York City remain popular for asbestos claims, ADA suits that target small businesses, and bogus food and beverage class actions. Beyond its longtime Judicial Hellhole® status, New York’s legislature additionally earned the title of “Lawsuit Inferno” in ATRA’s Legislative HeatCheck report two years running. ATRA will release its 2026 Legislative HeatCheck in late July.