For Florida to be more competitive, we need to improve our legal climate which is ranked 41st in the nation. This week, Florida can take a step closer to creating a perfect climate for business when, on Wednesday, the Florida House Civil Justice Subcommittee will vote on a Florida Chamber-backed legal reform concerning expert witness testimony.

David Hart, the Executive Vice President of the Florida Chamber, will testify in support of reforming expert witness on Wednesday while the plaintiff trial attorneys and their allies are already lining up to defend  Florida’s current job-killing legal system which imposes burdensome costs on employers, consumers, small businesses and the health care community.

Florida is among a shrinking number of states that still use the 85-year old Frye standard.  While the Daubert standard is applied in all federal courts nationwide and in a majority of state courts, Florida’s state trial courts lack such a strong standard for regulating expert witness testimony. Expert witness reform is important to Florida’s business community because it will strengthen the integrity of Florida’s state trial courts by requiring a more stringent standard which empowers judges to serve as gatekeepers when considering proposed expert testimony.  If signed into law, this legislation would help improve Florida’s legal and business climate since studies show that improving the legal climate could save Florida families and businesses $2.8 billion and increase employment by 2 percent.

Take Action Now:

Contact members of the Florida House Civil Justice Subcommittee and let them know they should help secure Florida’s future and support expert witness reform.

Larry Metz [R]   Chair 
Bill Hager [R]   Vice Chair 
Cynthia Stafford [D]   Democratic Ranking Member
Jim Boyd [R]   
Mike Clelland [D]   
Daniel Davis [R]   
Tom Goodson [R]   
Jose Oliva [R]   
Kathleen Passidomo [R]   
José Rodríguez [D]   
Ross Spano [R]   
Charlie Stone [R]   
Jim Waldman [D]  

To join the Florida Chamber’s efforts to secure Florida’s future and make Florida more competitive, contact Joe Culotta at (850) 521-1254 or jculotta@flchamber.com. To receive more grassroots alerts and updates from the Florida Chamber, sign-up at www.FloridaChamber.com/grassroots.