This letter to the editor was published in the Wall Street Journal and authored by Sherman “Tiger” Joyce, President of the American Tort Reform Association.
Your editorial “Meta’s Sensible Settlement” (Aug. 27) touches on a point my organization has made for decades: Regulation through litigation is no substitute for long-lasting legislation. Policy affecting an entire industry should be developed and enacted by elected lawmakers—not negotiated midtrial between trial lawyers and technology companies in an Oakland courtroom.
This is a pattern, not an anomaly. Trial lawyers have used the same playbook to target opioids, tobacco and other industries: sue repeatedly for big settlements, but leave the underlying problem untouched. That’s not real reform. That’s headlines, a big dollar figure, and new rules for one company or industry.
It’s up to legislators to solve problems in a way that serves society’s interests, including protecting both our children and American innovation. This settlement lets lawmakers and other public officials dodge their responsibility to do their jobs. But it’s a stopgap the plaintiffs’ bar prefers, because legislation is something they don’t control and can’t profit from. A settlement allows them to do both.
