This news story originally provided by The Register-Herald

West Virginia not 'judicial hellhole,' group contends

By Mannix Porterfield/REGISTER-HERALD REPORTER

West Virginia, Almost Heaven. Or a Judicial Hellhole?

It depends on who applies the label, and in the aftermath of one group branding West Virginia as a legal nightmare, another says the litigation pales beside that of most states.

A study unveiled by the National Center for State Courts says West Virginia actually ranks 35th in the number of lawsuits per population in 2002.

What's more, the center found no growth in the number of cases filed here between 2000 and 2002.

"Million-dollar corporations and billion-dollar insurance companies are lying to the people of West Virginia," charged Gary Zuckett, coordinator of the West Virginia Consumers and Victims Coalition for Insurance Reform, which is part of West Virginia Citizen Action Group.

Zuckett's group, formed during the 2003 legislative session, embraces a number of organizations and counts within its ranks some union members, consumer advocates, rights groups and consumer attorneys.

Not a lawyer himself, Zuckett produced figures compiled by the center a day after the American Tort Reform Association portrayed West Virginia as a "judicial hellhole," ranking the state fourth in states where lawsuits and adverse rulings proliferate.

"They are trying to convince us that West Virginia's court system is out of step with the rest of the country. They're saying that people who live here do nothing but file lawsuits."

Zuckett said the figures produced by the National Center reflect the results of an independent study and they clearly show West Virginia is 35th in suits, not fourth.

"We're not even in the top 50 percent," he said. "How can we be ranked 35th and be a judicial hellhole? The picture ATRA is trying to paint has no basis in reality. These numbers tell the truth."

The center said 73,627 cases were filed in this state two years ago, or 4,086 per 100,000 residents.

Ranked first in the figures was the District of Columbia with 15,298 per 100,000, while Maryland was second with 15,158 cases per 100,000.

Looking at border states, Virginia came in third, with 14,004 per 100,000, Ohio was 14th at 6,496 per 100,000, Kentucky placed 25th with 5,242 per 100,000 and Pennsylvania was 44th at 3,401 per 100,000.

Based in Williamsburg, Va., the center is a nonprofit group dedicated to improving justice by providing leadership and service to state courts, a WVCAG official said.

Founded in 1971 by the Conference of Chief Justices and former Chief Justice Warren Burger, it provides education, training and technology, management and research services to courts.

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