Circuit Judge Mackie Pierce heard arguments for and against keeping Issue One, the lawsuit-limiting amendment, this morning and said he’d rule quickly.
Retired Judge Marion Humphrey filed suit to have the amendment tossed as unconstitutional
The amendment caps non-economic damages for, say,
The state is defending the amendment. The chamber of commerce is supporting it.
Whatever Pierce’s decision, it likely will go on to the Arkansas Supreme Court, whose members include an opponent of the change in rule-making authority in the person of Chief Justice Dan Kemp and a long-time supporter of a reduction in damage suits by Justice Shawn Womack, who fought for so-called tort reform as a Republican state senator.