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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Class-action lawsuits bill loses in Senate

Jim Abrams Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Legislation that supporters said would target abuses of class-action lawsuits was rejected by the Senate on Thursday, a victim of election-year skirmishing between the two parties.

Proponents of the Class Action Fairness Act, which would have moved many lawsuits from state to federal courts, failed to get the 60 votes needed to proceed, effectively killing it for this legislative year. The vote was 44-43.

The bill itself had strong backing, but hit an impasse when Republican leaders denied Democrats’ attempts to link it to several of their major legislative priorities.

Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., a leading supporter, said he unsuccessfully proposed to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., that amendments be allowed on raising the minimum wage, global warming, mental health insurance and native Hawaiian rights. He also wanted assurances that a prescription drug importation bill would come up in September.

Frist said previously he was willing to take up the minimum wage issue but balked at other amendments not directly related to the class-action issue.

Democrats said the White House also wanted to avoid a vote this year on an immigration bill, sponsored by Sens. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, and Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and backed by Hispanic groups, that would give temporary legal status to undocumented farm workers.

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., one of several Democrats who backed the bill but voted against the measure Thursday to protest the amendment restrictions, said he was “still hopeful that cooler heads will prevail” and the bill could be resurrected later in the year.

Congress has been trying for years to overhaul class-action lawsuit procedures, particularly the practice of “forum shopping” where attorneys seek out courts known for handing out huge damage awards.

Several other GOP-led efforts this year to reduce what some regard as frivolous lawsuits have also died in the Senate. They included bills to limit awards in medical malpractice suits and protect gun manufacturers from liability suits.