One of the legislative measure’s goals was to limit owners’ liability for injuries that occur on their property. It was also aimed at reforming the judicial process itself by splitting trials into multiple stages so that juries have time to consider liability and damages independently of each other.
The bill is supported by other prominent Republican figures like Gov. Brian Kemp and Senator Pro Temp John F. Kennedy. Now, it has garnered even more support from Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.
In an exclusive interview with Dome Politics, Lt. Gov. Jones expressed his support by explaining how the bill is pro-consumer and aimed at easing the stress of the business community when it comes to employing insurance.
“And we've gotten out of balance here in the state of Georgia, where you've got too many fraudulent claims, you've got too many of these, what they call phantom awards that are going on, and we just got to rein that back in because, like I said, this is not a pro insurance company bill, it's not an anti-trial lawyer bill, it is a Georgia consumer bill because the cost of trying to get insurance right now is becoming very, very, very stressful for the business community,” said Lt. Jones.
Jones’s perspective reinforces the idea that the bill is focused on relieving the stress put on businesses and consumers. This is in contrast to the idea that the bill is somehow pro-corporate.
Jones also explains how he relates to the issues facing businesses that are overwhelmed by liability suits. “As a business owner, I know exactly what you know our business community is going through right now. We've experienced it firsthand, and there's a lot of factors into it, and that's the number one thing people have to understand when you say torts, well, it's a pretty broad spectrum of what's out there.”
Jones concludes by expressing how the bill’s ultimate focus is not on judicial reform but on improving the living standards for Georgians across the state.
“But at the end of the day, we got to look after the citizens of the state.”
