For Immediate Release
October 10, 2000

Contact:
Andrew E. Doehrel
President
Ohio Chamber of Commerce
614-228-4201
adoehrel@ohiochamber.com

CHAMBER STUDY SHOWS CORRELATION BETWEEN TRIAL LAWYER CONTRIBUTIONS, SUPREME COURT DECISIONS

COLUMBUS - The Ohio Chamber of Commerce today released a study showing a strong link between trial lawyer contributions to the campaigns of Ohio Supreme Court Justices and their behavior on cases where the trial bar filed briefs. In 75 cases where the Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers (OATL) filed "friend of the court" briefs urging the court to take an action, the justices who received the most money from trial attorneys voted overwhelmingly with the OATL position.

"This study demonstrates a strong correlation between campaign contributions and decisions rendered by the high court in the last six years," said Ohio Chamber President Andrew Doehrel. "The contribution levels have already been well documented. Now this study looks at cases where the trial bar urged a specific result - and who voted for that result."

According to the study, the justices voted with the OATL position the following percentage of the time in these cases:
(The percentages are shown with the corresponding levels of support from OATL members, according to studies performed by Ohio Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.)

	With OATL	Contributions	Year
Sweeney	88 percent	$388,625	1998
Resnick	82 percent	$261,033	1994
Douglas	81 percent	$204,408	1996
Pfeifer	78 percent	$358,450	1998
Moyer	42 percent	$9,500	1998
Stratton	36 percent	$13,320	1996
Cook	28 percent	$25,792	1994

"The business community has experienced some criticism for its participation in court politics this year, from those who claim that it politicizes the court," Doehrel said. "One need only look at these numbers to realize that the court has already been politicized by the dollars poured into judicial races over the past decade by the trial bar. The business community's participation in court races this year is not intended to tip the scales of justice to an opposing position but simply to rebalance them. We are looking for nothing more than a fair hearing for everyone."

The study examined the rulings on 93 cases where the OATL filed amicus briefs, decided between January 1994 and May 2000. The study begins with 1994, since each member of the court has stood for election since that time and the aggregate trial lawyer contributions have been reported for those races. Only cases decided on the merits with an opinion were included. Cases that were dismissed or where the disposition was mixed, e.g. affirmed in part, reversed in part, were eliminated. Seventy-five cases remained, which were individually scored.

To see the entire list of cases Click Here.