Henry’s Veto of Lawsuit Reform Keeps Oklahoma on ‘Judicial Hellholes’ List

The State of Oklahoma has suffered another blow because of Gov. Brad Henry’s veto of bipartisan lawsuit reform legislation during the 2007 legislative session.

For the fourth consecutive year, the Judicial Hellholes report published by the nonpartisan American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) gives Oklahoma a “dishonorable mention.”

“America’s job-creators pay attention to the Judicial Hellholes report. This is very bad news for Oklahoma, and it is the latest in a long list of damaging publicity Gov. Henry created for our state with his veto.

“This report creates another hurdle in our efforts to attract jobs and grow our economy,” said State Senate Co-President Pro Tempore Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City.

SB 507 passed the Senate and House of Representatives with bipartisan majorities during the 2007 legislative session, and included 18 of the 28 reforms Henry proposed in 2004. Despite previous promises to support meaningful lawsuit reform, Henry flip-flopped and vetoed SB 507.

The 2007 Judicial Hellholes report is posted at www.atra.org http://www.atra.org.