There already is talk of a new fight. In November 1996, the American Tort Reform Association , an industry coalition, announced it would try to persuade the new Congress to start moving a bill early in 1997. ATRA members include companies ranging from General Motors to Eli Lilly to the American Dental Association. Joining ATRA in the lobbying campaign for tort reform are other industry coalitions, such as the Product Liability Alliance. They argue that access to the courts is an important way for people to hold companies responsible for faulty products, pointing to such examples as the Ford Pinto and the Dalkon shield.
Trial lawyers are also big givers on the state level.
The House and the Senate passed The Common Sense Product Liability Reform Act of 1996, H.R. 956, in March 1996. President Clinton vetoed the measure on May 2, 1996. National Journal s Congress Daily , Nov. 14, 1996.