Personal Injury Law Update

Senate Passes Life Jacket Bill to Reduce Fatalities in Boating Accidents on Oregon Rivers

Yesterday, the Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill sponsored by Rep. John Huffman (R-The Dalles) to increase safety on Oregon’s rivers. HB 2079 requires boat operators and passengers to wear whitewater-approved life jackets on waters rated class III or higher. It now moves to the Governor’s Desk.

Rep. Huffman said he introduced the bill on behalf of law enforcement officials who’ve responded to countless emergencies on whitewater rapids because operators and passengers were not wearing life jackets. The bill is expected to save lives and taxpayer dollars.

Oregon Legislature Holding Public Hearings on Bills Related to Banning Chemicals in Products Intended for Children

The House Consumer Protection Committee of the Oregon Legislature, chaired by Rep. Paul Holvey (D-Eugene), announced that it has held its first public hearings today on HB 2367 and HB 2792. HB 2367 would ban the chemical Bisphenol-A (BPA) in products intended for use by children, while HB 2792 would give the Department of Human Services the authority to identify chemicals of high concern that pose significant risks to the health of children or developing fetuses.

Representatives from across Oregon’s public health and environmental community testified on the inadequacy of current safety regulations to protect children from dangerous chemicals linked to harmful health and developmental disorders in children.

The legislature indicated that banning the sale of dangerous toys and children’s products is part of the Oregon House Democrats’ 2009 Roadmap for Oregon’s Future. A bill banning the sale of toy-like lighters, HB 2365, has already been passed into law.

We encourage our Oregon readers to contact their state legislator to share your input on these issues.

Oregon Legislative Panel Formed to Consider Tort Law Overhaul After Clarke v. OHSU Decision of the Oregon Supreme Court

At the end of May it was reported that the Oregon State Legislature had appointed a special bipartisan panel (consisting of 10 lawmakers and various stakeholder groups, including local governments and the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association) to examine Oregon's tort laws and propose reforms. Among the issues the panel is expected to tackle are questions of separating medical malpractice from other claims, adjusting award caps for inflation, economic versus non-economic damages, and establishing a procedural mechanism for challenging caps.

In particular, the panel is also expected to propose a legislative response to the December 2007 decision in Clarke v. Oregon Health Sciences University, in which the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that while the defendant ("OHSU"), a major public teaching hospital in Portland, was protected by the statutory liability cap of $200,000 in medical malpractice cases, the cap did not extend to employees of the hospital. Since another state law requires public institutions to pay damages won against their employees, the decision effectively nullified the cap (in Clarke, the damages alleged exceeded $17 million).

Describing the objectives of the legislative panel in light of Clarke, State Senator Suzanne Bonamici explained: "We need to protect the rights of people who are injured, but at the same time address the concerns of the governmental entities that are not only facing economic hardship but also accustomed to having some amount of protection from the tort claim statute."