May 4, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— SENATE S6191 

and there was a noted problem with the 

landing gear, and they went by the airport and came away, and a helicopter 

owned by the Sun Oil Co. came by trying to observe, and there was a crash. 

The planes fell into a crowded school 

yard in suburban Philadelphia. There 

were terrible injuries. If we had made 

changes in joint liability in that case, 

the children, some of whom were 

killed, and some of whom were badly 

burned, would not be able to recover 

fully. 

So when you have a case where there 

is joint liability and the issue is raised, 

why should a party who is only 50 percent liable pay the whole thing when 

the other party is insolvent, or under 

the current law has the full responsibility? The law has been established in 

that effect because joint liability is 

composed when there is substantial 

negligent conduct by the party which 

causes the injuries. If you have to balance the injustice of having one party 

only partially liable pay the full damages, where others are insolvent, it 

turns on who is going to bear the loss, 

the injured plaintiff, who is not at 

fault, as the children were not at fault 

in the air collision which took the life 

of Senator Heinz and others on the 

ground, and very serious burn injuries. 

I filed an amendment at the desk 

which would seek to limit, to an extent, joint liability. You hear about 

the cases where somebody is liable only 

for 1 or 2 percent and the parties liable 

for 98 or 99 percent are insolvent and 

the party who is only peripherally involved has to pay the full verdict. It 

seems to me that perhaps something in 

the nature of 15 percent might be an 

appropriate cutoff. That joint liability 

would not attach if somebody were not 

liable beyond the extent of 15 percent. 

Mr. President, I offer these observations about ways that product liability 

could be crafted so that we could get 

legislation out of the Senate, where we 

might have a different standard on punitive damages to accommodate different review by the appellate courts to 

eliminate the really outlandish, runaway, or arbitrary jury verdicts, or 

limit it to the percentage of the net 

worth of the company—10 percent as I 

have suggested—so that a company, especially a small company, is not, in effect, intimidated or blackmailed into a 

settlement, because they cannot get 

the whole company. Or ways where we 

might have a limitation on joint liability. 

Mr. President, I have been in Congress, the Senate, since the 97th Congress, when we reported out a product 

liability bill from the Commerce Committee, Senator Kasten. It was a long 

time before the bill came to the floor 

after that. 

Last year, as I say, I voted for cloture, thinking we might get a bill. I believe that we could get a bill which 

would take significant steps, most emphatically, on the issues of frivolous 

lawsuits. So that in opposing cloture—

on a vote, we have only 46 Senators 

who voted for cloture, 53 against; on 

the second vote, 47 voted for cloture as 

against 52 against, a long way from the 

60 votes. 

I make these comments because I 

think that when we deal with the judicial system, it is not the plaintiff’s 

trial bar which establishes these rules. 

These rules were established by the 

courts of the United States. As I say, I 

have been on both sides of the fence 

representing plaintiffs and defendants 

in personal injury cases. 

I think where we have so many, 

many cases of outlandish conduct 

where big companies put products on 

the market on a calculation that they 

would rather pay for the deaths and the 

damages than to make the correction, 

if we take punitive damages away, it is 

not a wise thing for the Congress to do. 

I do not think many of our colleagues 

understand that. After I talked about 

some of the cases, talked about the 

blood case with AIDS virus in it, being 

circulated by one of the big companies, 

and one of my colleagues said, ‘‘That is 

awful,’’ and I made the comment about 

it. They had not heard. I do not think 

they really have reached all of our 

Members. 

Usually, there is not more than one 

Senator present or two, one presiding, 

but the rule of this body is that these 

speeches are made and these presentations are made with not more than 

two or three or four Senators on the 

floor. Some are listening in their offices, but relatively few. 

These are matters, I think, which yet 

have to be considered. It is my hope 

that we can craft legislation which will 

be curative on some of the issues, especially that of frivolous lawsuits, which 

I think is at the core of the problem in 

our courts today. I thank the Chair for 

staying late. I yield the floor. 

f 

RECESS UNTIL 10 A.M. TOMORROW 

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under 

the previous order, the Senate stands 

in recess until 10 a.m. Friday, May 5, 

1995. 

Thereupon, the Senate, at 6:13 p.m., 

recessed until Friday, May 5, 1995, at 10 

a.m. 

f 

NOMINATIONS 

Executive nominations received by 

the Senate May 4, 1995: 

THE JUDICIARY

ANDRE M. DAVIS, OF MARYLAND, TO BE U.S. DISTRICT 

JUDGE FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND, VICE WALTER 

E. BLACK, JR., RETIRED. 

CATHERINE C. BLAKE, OF MARYLAND, TO BE U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND, VICE 

JOHN M. HARGROVE, RETIRED. 

RESOLUTION TRUST CORPORATION

HERBERT F. COLLINS, OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO BE A 

MEMBER OF THE THRIFT DEPOSITOR PROTECTION OVERSIGHT BOARD FOR A TERM OF 3 YEARS, VICE PHILIP C. 

JACKSON, JR., TERM EXPIRED. 

IN THE ARMY

THE FOLLOWING-NAMED OFFICER FOR APPOINTMENT 

TO THE GRADE OF GENERAL WHILE ASSIGNED TO A POSITION OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSIBILITY UNDER 

TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 601(A) AND 3034: 

VICE CHIEF OF STAFF OF THE ARMY

To be general 

LT. GEN. RONALD H. GRIFFITH, 000–00–0000 

THE FOLLOWING-NAMED OFFICER FOR REAPPOINTMENT TO THE GRADE OF GENERAL WHILE ASSIGNED TO 

A POSITION OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSIBILITY 

UNDER TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 601(A): 

To be general 

GEN. JOHN H. TILELLI, JR., 000–00–0000 

THE FOLLOWING-NAMED OFFICER FOR APPOINTMENT 

TO THE GRADE OF LIEUTENANT GENERAL WHILE ASSIGNED TO A POSITION OF IMPORTANCE AND RESPONSIBILITY UNDER TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 

601(A): 

To be lieutenant general 

MAJ. GEN. GEORGE A. FISHER, JR., 000–00–0000 

THE FOLLOWING U.S. ARMY NATIONAL GUARD OFFICERS FOR PROMOTION TO THE GRADES INDICATED IN 

THE RESERVE OF THE ARMY, UNDER THE PROVISIONS 

OF SECTIONS 3385, 3392, AND 12203(A), TITLE 10, UNITED 

STATES CODE: 

To be major general 

BRIG. GEN. WOODROW D. BOYCE, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. ROBERT J. BRANDT, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. JOSEPH H. LANGLEY, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. JOHN B. RAMEY, 000–00–0000 

To be brigadier general 

COL. JOHN D. LARSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. ROSETTA Y. BURKE, 000–00–0000 

COL. BURNEY H. ENZOR, 000–00–0000 

COL. FRANK P. BARAN, 000–00–0000 

COL. ROBERT M. BENSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. EDWARD L. CORREA, JR., 000–00–0000 

COL. WILLIAM R. LABRIE, 000–00–0000 

COL. NAMEN X. BARNES, 000–00–0000 

COL. RANDAL M. ROBINSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. PAUL D. MONROE, JR., 000–00–0000 

COL. LLOYD D. MC DANIEL, JR., 000–00–0000 

COL. STANLEY R. THOMPSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. HOLSEY A. MOORMAN, 000–00–0000 

COL. BRADLEY D. GAMBILL, 000–00–0000 

COL. HARVEY M. HAAKENSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. DAVID T. HARTLEY, 000–00–0000 

COL. DONALD F. HAWKINS, 000–00–0000 

COL. EARL L. DOYLE, 000–00–0000 

COL. DAVID M. WILSON, 000–00–0000 

COL. JAMES T. CARPER, 000–00–0000 

COL. WILLIAM T. THIELEMANN, 000–00–0000 

COL. FREDERIC J. RAYMOND, 000–00–0000 

THE FOLLOWING U.S. ARMY RESERVE OFFICERS FOR 

PROMOTION TO THE GRADES INDICATED IN THE RESERVE OF THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES, UNDER 

THE PROVISIONS OF SECTIONS 3371, 3384, AND 12203(A), 

TITLE 10, UNITED STATES CODE: 

To be major general 

BRIG. GEN. WILLIAM J. COLLINS, JR., 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. JOE M. ERNST, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. STEVE L. REPICHOWSKI, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. JOSEPH A. SCHEINKOENIG, 000–00–0000 

BRIG. GEN. JAMES W. WARR, 000–00–0000 

To be brigadier general 

COL. STEPHEN D. LIVINGSTON, 000–00–0000 

COL. JOSEPH L. THOMPSON III, 000–00–0000 

COL. ROGER L. BRAUTIGAN, 000–00–0000 

COL. JOHN G. TOWNSEND, 000–00–0000 

COL. MICHAEL L. BOZEMAN, 000–00–0000 

COL. WILLIAM B. RAINES, JR., 000–00–0000 

COL. JAMIE S. BARKIN, 000–00–0000 

COL. JOHN L. ANDERSON, 000–00–0000 

THE FOLLOWING U.S. ARMY RESERVE OFFICER FOR 

PROMOTION TO THE GRADE INDICATED IN THE RESERVE 

OF THE ARMY, UNDER TITLE 10, U.S.C., SECTIONS 3384 

AND 12203(A): 

To be brigadier general 

COL. JAMES R. HELMLY, 000–00–0000 

mmaher on MIKETEMP with SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS