A big win for Republicans in the House as the chamber votes 106-52 in favor of changing the civil litigation system in Missouri. House Speaker Rod Jetton of Marble Hill believes the bill will lower medical malpractice premiums, which have been blamed for doctors quitting their practices or leaving the state. The bill caps punitive damages in most cases at $250,000 and it greatly restricts where civil cases can be heard by ending so-called venue shopping. That’s the practice of trial attorneys doing all they can to have cases heard in St. Louis or Kansas City, where jury awards are usually much higher than the norm elsewhere in the state.
