A House Judiciary Subcommittee held a hearing on a SEMA-supported bill that would require federal judges to sanction plaintiffs and attorneys who file lawsuits the judges deem frivolous. Under current law, federal judges are allowed but not required to impose penalties. The “Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act” (LARA) would also eliminate a provision in current law that allows lawyers to avoid penalties by withdrawing frivolous claims after sanction proceedings have begun. Courts could also award the prevailing parties reasonable expenses and attorney's fees in defending against a frivolous lawsuit. Similar legislation has been introduced in the past decade, most recently in 2005 when the House passed a bill but it failed in the Senate.
For more information, contact Stuart Gosswein at stuartg@sema.org.