The journey to meaningful tort reform in Mississippi was a multi-year act of persistence and grass roots activism by tort reform advocates in the state, chief among them the Mississippi State Medical Association (MSMA). In 2002, the U. S. Chamber of Commerce called Mississippi a “judicial hellhole” because of high jury awards. Physicians were literally leaving the state rather than face the state’s dangerous “jackpot justice” malpractice climate. Those physicians who stayed found that by 2002 every malpractice provider except for Medical Assurance Company of Mississippi (MACM) had ceased offering policies, and MACM was unable to provide policies for all of those physicians losing their providers. In this extended battle for meaningful tort reform in Mississippi, physicians became the “Tip of the Spear”: the “medical crisis provided an opportunity to use doctors as a catalyst to jumpstart the broader issue for all Mississippians.”1 South Central Medical Society, an MSMA component society, fired one of the first salvos in the tort reform war for Mississippi physicians with a widely publicized press conference on January 11, 2002, in McComb. Days later on January 16th, the MSMA sponsored an important White Coat Rally with over 300 doctors showing up at the Capitol to press the issue with legislators.2 Multiple other “White Coat Rallies” and press conferences were held to pressure legislators at various times in the tort reform journey. Despite such efforts, tort reform failed to evolve at the 2002 regular legislative session.1,3,4

After President George W. Bush mentioned the issue in a speech in August 2002, Governor Ronnie Musgrove, facing significant public pressure, called a special session on tort reform (even though he was not an ardent supporter of tort reform). This session began September 5th and ended Nov. 27th, a most extraordinary session which lasted a protracted 83 days (the longest special session in Mississippi legislative history). This special session did result in the first round of relatively mild tort reforms, which Governor Haley Barbour would later term a “charade.” “Honestly,” said Barbour on the campaign trail in 2003, “the governor (Musgrove) called a special session because he had a gun pointed to his head.”5 Dr. John Cook, then president of the MSMA, described the 2002 special session as a political whirlwind. “The whole process has been a study in frustration for me,” he said at the time.6 Musgrove’s first call in the session was to address medical malpractice issues, with House Bill 2, the medical malpractice reform bill, adopted on October 7th and signed by Musgrove on October 8th. (The session would drag on as Musgrove then expanded the session’s agenda to include general civil justice reform.) Although MSMA leadership acknowledged and praised passage of the medical malpractice reforms, MSMA (and most physicians) perceived the 2002 bill as at best a “first step,” with meaningful reform still needed and much unfinished tort reform remaining.4

The U. S. Chamber of Commerce was also unimpressed with the 2002 bill and continued to call Mississippi a “judicial hellhole,” and legislators refused to address tort reform further in the 2003 session of the Legislature. However, state elections occurred that year, and Haley Barbour, who was running for Governor, used tort reform, especially for medical malpractice, as the center argument of his campaign. That gubernatorial race in 2003, which pitted in the final vote incumbent Musgrove against challenger Barbour, was “driven by the single issue of tort reform,” wrote political commentator Sid Salter.7 In a campaign speech to a gathering of physicians in Fernwood, Barbour promised, “I want you to know that if I am elected governor, I will fight for tort reform.” The physician audience erupted in an “outburst of applause.”5

The political wave for tort reform not only elected Barbour governor in November, but washed in with him numerous new faces in the Legislature who would champion reform. Despite Barbour’s strong leadership and support, tort reform failed to come to fruition during the 2004 regular session. However, as the regular session’s tort reform bills stalled, Barbour threatened to call a special session (his term was special sessions, plural) to pass meaningful civil justice reform. Barbour was not going to budge nor wait on the issue, and soon after the regular session adjourned without tort reform, Barbour followed through on his promise, calling legislators back into a special session to deal with the issue. That special session began on May 19th, and the Senate soon passed a tort reform bill, but the House stalled it. After several weeks, the House finally was swayed, with a comprehensive tort reform package, House Bill 13, approved on June 7th. At the end of the session, The Clarion-Ledger editorialized, “The battle was hard fought, the issues thorny, and success worth celebrating. It’s important to send the message that Mississippi is… ‘open for business’ with these reforms.”8

On June 16, 2004, at the state Capitol, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour signed into law HB 13, the 2004 Tort Reform Act. This legislation as passed and signed by Barbour significantly altered the governing rules for civil litigation in Mississippi, addressing the contributing factors for the state’s deserved reputation for excessive jury awards. Major reforms in HB 13, which became effective September 1, 2004, included the following: strong venue changes; reasonable limits on non-economic damage awards ($500,000 for medical malpractice and $1 million for general businesses); significant joint and several liability revisions; strong innocent retailer provisions; and protections against punitive damages for medium and small businesses.9,10

Governor Barbour Signs Landmark Tort Reform Act of 2004

As he signed the legislation, Governor Barbour thanked the House and Senate and others for their work. “As I sign this bill into law, I want to thank those who have worked so hard for the passage of meaningful tort reform,” said Governor Barbour. “It is a major achievement and a great day for Mississippi.”9 This image, which was preserved in the digital files of MSMA, was taken as Barbour prepared to sign the bill. It features a mix of key state senators and representatives who supported tort reform. Starting on the bottom row, going left to right: Rep. Mark Baker, Rep. John Moore, Rep. Jeff Smith, Rep. Mark Formby, unidentified (over Formby’s left shoulder), Rep. Bill Denny, Jr., Rep. Danny Guice, Jr., Rep. Gary Staples, Rep. Mike Lott, Rep. Lee J. Davis, Rep. Jim Simpson, Sen. Charlie Ross, Sen. Billy Hewes, Sen. Tommy Moffatt, Rep. Mary Ann Stevens, Sen. Tom King, Rep. Rita Martinson, Sen. Terry Burton, Rep. Frank Hamilton, Rep. Ted Mayhall. Top Row: Rep. Jerry Turner, Rep. Jim Ellington, Rep. Jim Beckett, Rep. Greg Snowden, unidentified, Rep. Gary Chism, Rep. Dannie Reed, Rep. Margaret Rogers, Rep. Noal Akins, Sen. Joey Fillingane, Sen. Neeley C. Carlton Lyons, and Rep. Andrew Ketchings.

Emily Pettus, a reporter for the Associated Press, covered the event and described the bill signing: “During the ceremony at the state Capitol, Barbour thanks all the legislators who worked on the bill— even those who overcame their initial opposition to support a compromise measure. Barbour singled out a few lawmakers by name. He gave Reps. Jeff Smith, D-Columbus, and Jim Simpson Jr., R-Pass Christian, credit for working across party lines to push a bill that, among other things, caps pain-and-suffering damage awards. Smith praised business people, doctors and others who lobbied for the bill. ‘Thank you for keeping the pressure on us,’ Smith said. Barbour also applauded the Senate generally and singled out Judiciary A Chairman Charlie Ross, R-Brandon, and Senate President Pro Tempore Travis Little, R-Corinth for thanks. With Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck still recovering from pneumonia, Little presided during the recent special session when the lawsuit limits bill was passed. Little said of Barbour, who has a center office in the Capitol: ‘It sure is nice to have someone in the middle of the hall in the bully pulpit.’”11

Barbour and his wife unveiled a sign touting the bill as a big step forward for making Mississippi more business friendly. The sign stated, “The Tort Reform Act of 2004 means conditions are now perfect for locating in Mississippi.” On the same day as the signing, MassMutual Financial Group, a nationwide life insurance company, announced they were re-entering the market for the state’s municipal bonds due to the bill’s passage. At that time, Barbour asserted in a press release, “The time is now to tell job-creators and healthcare providers that our courtrooms are fair for everyone. I have already begun my quest to tell national business leaders to take another look at Mississippi.” He added, “Because of this legislation, we’re going to make significant strides in reversing our bad reputation of being known as a ‘judicial hellhole.’ Businesses are already returning to Mississippi. If we want to create jobs, it’s time to start touting the good news.”9

Physicians around the state responded to the tort reform bill passage with excitement. In Tupelo, Dr. Ken Davis, chief medical officer at North Mississippi Medical Center, noted, “In the last week, doctors are much more optimistic about practicing in Mississippi.” Dr. Steven Brandon, a Starkville family physician and board member of the Mississippi Medical Association, reflected that the law wasn’t ideal, but would make Mississippi a more attractive place to practice medicine. “Reasonable compromises were made on both sides,” Brandon said. He further asserted that he wished the bill had included an independent medical review panel to weed out frivolous lawsuits, which was an unrealized goal of many physicians in the tort battle. Dr. Davis summed up the hope of many physicians that their energy could now be directed toward “more pressing health problems… I hope we have solved this problem. I hope we can move forward to improve the safety, access and quality of health care and find ways to reduce the cost of health care.”12

Over time, this act has withstood several court challenges and continues to protect physicians and businesses in the state. I would like to express my sincere thanks to Dr. Sidney Bondurant of Madison for his help in identifying the legislators in this image. If you have an old or even somewhat recent photograph which would be of interest to Mississippi physicians, please send it to me at drluciuslampton@gmail.com or by snail mail to the Journal. — Lucius M. “Luke” Lampton, MD; JMSMA Editor