The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on the Constitution held a hearing earlier this week on "Can We Sue Our Way to Prosperity?: Litigation's Effect on America's Global Competitiveness." Speakers included a public policy expert from NERA; a law school professor; and my friend, esteemed litigator John Beisner.

Paul Hinton testified that the direct cost of the U.S. tort system is estimated to be approximately $250 billion in 2009 or about 2 percent of GDP. The U.S. costs are the highest as a percent of GDP amongst those reported for other industrialized countries and more than double the estimates for countries such as the U.K, France, and Japan. Small businesses bear a relatively larger share of tort costs than larger businesses.

Professor Silver from Texas tried to make the case that the civil justice systems contributes greatly to the prosperity of the U.S. He seemed to think that litigation is the only thing that deters doctors from committing widespread medical malpractice.