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“Fabre” Bill Back on Senate Judiciary Agenda

April 5, 2007

We have learned that SB 1558 by Senator Jeremy Ring (D-Margate) is back on the Senate Judiciary’s agenda for Tuesday, April 10th at 9:30 am in room 110 Senate Office Building.  As you know, SB 1558 undermines and essentially eliminates the 2006 repeal of Joint & Several liability that AIF and Florida’s business community fought so long and hard to achieve.  In addition:

  • The Business Community does NOT support any changes to Florida’s comparative fault doctrine; and
  • Current law guarantees that no person or business be forced to pay more than their fair share – NO CHANGE IS NEEDED; and
  • If passed, juries will NOT be allowed to allocate fault to every person or entity responsible for causing harm; and
  • SB 1558 will promote gamesmanship in initiating lawsuits only against deep-pocket defendants based on their ability to pay rather than on their contribution to the injury or harm; and
  • SB 1558 will diminish the ability of business and consumer defendants to properly defend themselves and will unfairly shield those who are truly responsible for the harm.


The bill was temporarily passed at the committee’s last meeting because Sen. Ring did not have the votes to pass it.  Under Senate rules, any bill that is (TP’ed) must be placed on the committee’s next agenda; if it is not taken up the bill is dead.

The business community must be prepared to stop this bill in its tracks.  The Senators on this committee need to hear from you about how critical this issue is to your family and business.  They need to know that you oppose SB 1558 as well as any other efforts to change Florida’s current legal system.  Urge them to fight to maintain the current balanced system and to accept no compromises on this critical issue. 

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