From Fort Mill Times: WASHINGTON — Lisa A. Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR), issued the following statement today applauding the Wisconsin Senate for passing legislation promoting transparency and limiting contingency fees when the state attorney general, an executive branch agency, or elected officials hire outside private plaintiff attorneys to represent the state. The legislation, the Transparency in Private Attorney Contracting Act (AB 27), now heads to Governor Scott Walker for his signature.
“By advancing AG ‘sunshine’ legislation, Wisconsin’s Senate took a significant step today to rein in the troublesome practice of awarding contingency fee contracts to outside plaintiffs’ lawyers. Such schemes enrich lawyers at the expense of taxpayers and raise significant concerns about ‘pay-to-play,’ conflicts of interest, the use of a public entity for personal gain, and fairness in prosecutions. We urge Governor Walker to swiftly sign this bill into law.
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