The Florida Legislature passed legislation on the last day of the session which fulfills the commitment of the Governor and Legislature to reform the civil system. Products 12 years and older can't be the subject of a lawsuit, unless manufacturers warrant them to last longer. Aircraft were made an exception where products 20 years old or less cannot be subjected to lawsuits. Limits on deep pockets. A sliding scale will be used to divide damage liability among multiple defendants, based on the amount of fault of the plaintiff and of the individual defendants.
Current law allows any defendant in a lawsuit to be responsible for the entire award.
Changes in the award of punitive damages. Plaintiffs will have to provide cause to show that a defendant's actions were offensive enough to merit monetary punitive damages. House passed it 84 to 33 and the Senate passed it 25 to 14. Awaiting the Governor's signature. The bills attempt to create a fair playing field for individuals to petition governments, file lawsuits and participate in the political process by creating an expedited disposition process for suits filed by government agencies against citizens.