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Op-Ed: Illinois lawmakers must stop
creating policies that harm small businesses, threaten jobs
By Karen Tirio
While our civil justice system is meant to right certain wrongs, our
state’s legal policies leave the door wide open to indiscriminate legal
actions that contradict the true meaning of justice.
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 As a small business owner, I see firsthand the
devastating impact high taxes, overly burdensome regulations, and lawsuit abuse
have on our communities. Mom-and-pop shops are forced to close, basic goods
become more costly, and thousands of families each year make the difficult
decision to either endure emerging hardships or relocate to another state. In a
time of high inflation and economic uncertainty, it is critical lawmakers work
together to alleviate the harsh economic loads families in Illinois endure.
Excessive taxes and regulations hamper the future success of new businesses
opening in our local communities. This is already abundantly clear to many.
Compound this with excessively frivolous lawsuits and the burden small business
families are forced to grapple with can become suffocating. Fixing the issue of
lawsuit abuse plaguing our state is something that would benefit everyone.
Abusive lawsuits wreak havoc on Illinois’ economy and disrupt the lives of
countless individuals. The need to address this problem ought to take center
stage in our town squares.
While our civil justice system is meant to right certain wrongs, our state’s
legal policies leave the door wide open to indiscriminate legal actions that
contradict the true meaning of justice. State laws give self-motived trial
attorneys free rein to conceive and initiate their own legal action on
undeserving businesses. On top of this, the largest percentages of a settlement
in many cases are carved out to the lawyers themselves, with pennies left for
the actual plaintiffs. As these certain firms shop around faux controversies to
enrich themselves, the consequences not only affect undeserving business owners
and plaintiffs, but the prices of goods on the shelves, competition, consumer
access, job stability, and much more.
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A recent economic impact report indicated that Illinois families pay nearly
$2,100 more every year for goods and services due to lawsuit abuse. Furthermore,
more than 170,000 Illinois jobs are lost every year because of this. When
businesses are forced to pay hand-over-fist to defend themselves, even when the
lawsuit against them lacks merit, prices go up and employees get laid off.
Employees and local consumers should not have to stand for that.
Findings like these should send a shockwave across our state and motivate our
leaders to act. Instead, many lawmakers in Springfield are continuing to
encourage the destructive nature of frivolous lawsuits when we need to be doing
the opposite. Our economy is already suffering enough from the high cost of
owning a business. Common sense legal reforms would give job-creators a
much-needed reprieve from the constant threat of frivolous lawsuits.
By ending the carve outs for trial lawyer interest groups, family-owned
businesses can thrive and positively impact our local communities. We can fight
inflation, protect jobs, and bolster the competitiveness of the market. If we
finally get these priorities in line, we can lighten the load of economic
hardship before the final straw breaks the camel’s back.
Karen Tirio is the president of Monarch Senior Care in Woodstock,
IL.
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