mr. speaker , i 'm pleased join my colleagues here today who support taking a historic first step to breaking one of the main shackles holding back our economy and america 's workforce -- lawsuit abuse . 
for the last decade , the republican congress has worked to end out of control lawsuits . 
today is the day we will pass common-sense legislation and put an end to class action lawsuit abuse . 
i particularly want to praise the efforts of house judiciary chairman jim sensenbrenner for his relentless work . 
without his stewardship , i do n't think th achievement would have become a reality . 
i come from illinois -- the land of lincoln -- where downstate madison county has the dubious distinction as a personal injury lawyer 's paradise . 
no , there are not palm trees or sandy beaches there . 
instead , madison county , illinois , is home to very warm courtrooms where frivolous lawsuits are filed virtually everyday . 
why 's madison county ? 
the answer : `` venue shopping. '' cagey trial lawyers have figured out there 's a pretty good likelihood their case -- no matter what its merit -- will literally get its day in court because of favorable judges . 
to use a sports analogy , thanks to willing judges , personal injury lawyers get to play on their `` home court '' each and every time they file a frivolous lawsuit there . 
for instance , a legendary class action case from madison county illustrates what 's wrong with the current legal system . 
in 2000 , cable tv customers who filed suit over their cable operator 's late fee policy won their case , but received nothing ... .. 
not a dime , not a nickel , not a lincoln penny . 
instead , their $ 5.6 million settlement went directly into the pockets of their attorneys . 
how is that justice ? 
how does that help victims ? 
the american people deserve better . 
our working families demand better . 
today 's action takes a step in the right direction to end the so-called tort tax . 
the tort tax makes consumers pay more for the goods and services they use . 
the tort tax adds to the cost of everything we buy because businesses and manufacturers have to cover themselves and their employees -- just in case they get sued by a greedy personal injury lawyer . 
at last estimate , this outrageous tort tax cost the nation 's economy $ 246 billion a year , and by 2006 , it will cost the average american nearly $ 1 , 000 more each year on their purchases because of defensive business practices . 
in closing , as a matter of principle , damage awards should go to the victim , not the lawyers . 
lawsuits should not be `` strike it rich '' schemes for lawyers . 
there has to be some limit to what lawyers can take from their clients . 
otherwise , cagey attorneys end up with the lion 's share of the settlement and the victims end up with little more than scraps . 
