American Justice Partnership Exits The Legal Reform Arena

LANSING, Mich., Dec. 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- After 10 years of successfully battling for legal reform and the election of rule-of-law judges, the American Justice Partnership (AJP) announced today it will exit the political arena effective December 31, 2014.  Since its founding in 2004, AJP has worked with more than 60 national and state partners to promote a fair, stable and predictable legal environment that enables entrepreneurs and businesses to thrive.   

"It's been a privilege and a joy to help build AJP into a powerful force for promoting free enterprise and legal reform in states across America," said AJP President Dan Pero.  "AJP's legacy extends from statehouses and Supreme Courts down to local businesses that continue to benefit from the reform agenda we've helped enact." 

Pero said the focus of AJP was to educate voters on the importance of the rule of law and how rule of law courts and legislatures can have a positive impact on families, business and communities. "Our education initiatives were a prime driver for greater judicial accountability and legal reform legislation," Pero said. Some of the results of the past decade include:

• Michigan:  The state Supreme Court flipped from an activist 4-3 majority to a rule-of-law 4-3 majority by supporting the re-election of Justice Bob Young and the election of Justice Mary Beth Kelly.  (2010)
• Michigan:  The Supreme Court's 4-3 rule-of-law majority was kept intact with the re-election of Justices Stephen Markman and Brian Zahra in the face of the most expensive opposition campaign in state history.  AJP also led the fight against corrupt Michigan Supreme Court Justice Diane Hathaway, who resigned in disgrace after her fraudulent real estate dealings were exposed.  (2012, 2013)
• Oklahoma:  AJP helped secure passage of comprehensive legal reform legislation. Key reform advocates won legislative races.  (2004 - 2010)
• Florida:  AJP has promoted a variety of successful legal reform initiatives, including legislation to eliminate joint and several liability, limit junk science in asbestos cases and provide juries with the facts they need to reach fair verdicts in product liability claims against automakers.  (2005-2011)
• South Carolina:  AJP helped promote the passage of the most comprehensive legal reform bill in state history, including a cap on punitive damages, which was signed into law by Governor Nikki Haley.  (2011)
• Texas:  AJP successfully promoted a series of legal reform bills to discourage frivolous lawsuits, promote the early dismissal of cases, and prevent the trial bar from expanding business liability.  (2009 – 2011)
• West Virginia: The election of a rule-of-law Attorney General broke decades of trial lawyer influence in the state with a commitment to promoting a more stable and predictable legal environment.  (2012)
• Mississippi:  The State House of Representatives switched from Democrat to Republican for the first time since Reconstruction and helped strengthen the Republican majority in the Senate.  The re-election of passionate legal reform advocate Governor Haley Barbour and rule-of-law judges who held or won Supreme Court seats in several election cycles was vital to the creation of a more stable legal environment.  (2004-2011)

In addition to these state-by-state victories, AJP also took on a national leadership role in exposing the multi-million campaign financed by George Soros's Justice at Stake to revoke the right of people to vote for their state Supreme Court justices. 

AJP's seminal report, "Justice Hijacked", revealed the vast network of Soros-sponsored groups all dedicated to abolishing democratic judicial elections and promoting the so-called "merit" selection system, where judges are selected by a panel controlled by lawyers. 

AJP's opposition to the Soros campaign resulted in the launch of the influential blog americancourthouse, which built the intellectual, political and business case against "merit" selection.  With AJP's help, "merit" selection was rolled back in Kansas and Tennessee and defeated in every single state in which the plan made it to the ballot.  Americancourthouse also played a leading public role in opposing phony campaign disclosure rules intended to silence or intimidate pro-business advocates from exercising their First Amendment rights in the political arena. 

Pero credited AJP's decade of success to the strong network of partners who recognized that legal reform is only as successful as the latest election results. 

"I'd like to thank our 60-plus partners for their years of support to advance this important cause," Pero said.  "My message to businesses and their advocates is simple:  Stay in the fight!  Your opponents in the trial bar, unions and the rest of the anti-business left are engaged in a permanent campaign to seize control of our legal system.  They will only succeed if we fail to remain committed to the cause." 

Pero, former Chief of Staff to Michigan Governor John Engler, said he plans to spend more time focused on public policy and education in his home state of Michigan.  He urged AJP partners to continue working with organizations focused on down-ballot state races, particularly the Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC). 

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SOURCE American Justice Partnership