Proposition 12 would allow the Legislature to cap non-economic damages in all civil actions.

Texas’ founding fathers created a system of checks and balances that gives judges and juries the power to decide damages in civil trials. But lobbyists for insurance companies have pushed for a radical change to the Texas Constitution’s Bill of Rights. They want the Texas Legislature to decide the results of civil cases, instead of juries.

Under the cloak of “lawsuit reform,” this proposition gives the Legislature the power to impose limits on “non-economic damages,” such as from permanent disfigurement, physical impairment and mental anguish.

Under the limits proposed by this amendment, a stay-at-home mother or elderly grandparent would be worth less than a lawyer, doctor or computer professional who has “economic” value because he or she has an income. This effectively places a dollar value on human life, based on earning potential, and protects the insurance companies, not Texas citizens.

In a May, 2003 Houston Chronicle article, Clay Robinson points out: “The only reason the Legislature scheduled an election on a far-reaching proposal to limit monetary damages in medical malpractice cases for Sept. 13, rather than Nov. 4, is to discourage voter turnout.”

Be sure to alert your friends, neighbors, colleagues and family members to vote against this proposition on Sept. 13.

Vote “NO” to Proposition 12.