Illinois ranks dead last in lawsuit freedom

How free are Illinoisans? Below average in most measures, and not very regarding lawsuits, the Cato Institute found.

An annual ranking of personal and economic freedoms found Illinois ranked 37th overall, but last place in the nation for lawsuit freedom.

The Cato Institute’s 2021 “Freedom in the 50 States” index ranks states on how their policies impact fiscal, regulatory and personal freedoms. Illinois was 25th in fiscal freedom, 30th in personal and 38th in regulatory.

The rankings are formed by an index of 230 policy variables such as tax rates and right-to-work laws.

Within the personal freedom umbrella, Illinois has been 50th overall in lawsuits since 2003. Lawsuit freedom is based on plaintiff-friendliness in a state’s civil liability system.

Personal freedom was up 20 spots from 50th in 2012 but fell out of the top 25 in 2019.

Overall, Illinois is on an upward trend since 2016 when it ranked 44th, seven spots lower than the 2021 list.

The authors of the index make three broad recommendations for fiscal, regulatory, and personal reform in Illinois:

• Fiscal:Reform local retirement systems to reduce taxes, which are sky-high.
• Regulatory: Reform the civil liability system by capping punitive damages, setting the standard for punitive damages at “beyond a reasonable doubt” and abolishing joint and several liability.
• Personal: If serious about reducing smoking, preempt local flavored e-cigarette sales bans and vaping bans in bars and restaurants.

Regulatory policy freedom measures the liability system, property rights, health insurance and the labor market, the index stated. Personal freedom includes measures of victimless crimes, gun and tobacco regulation plus education. Fiscal freedom looks at taxes, government jobs, spending, debt, the concentration of fiscal controls and other factors.