经济学人277:侵权法改革的弊与利

 　　Tort reform

　　侵权法改革

　　Closing the lottery¹

　　不能再靠碰运气

　　The debate over tort reform generates exaggerated claims, but also a few good ideas

　　改革催生了大量索赔，但也带来一些好观念

　　IN HIS floundering campaign for president, Rick Perry has at least brought one topic into prominence²: tort reform. In June the governor of Texas signed a “loser pays” tort law, intended to discourage slight or frivolous³ lawsuits⁴ by making losers pay the winners’ legal costs. Conservatives are eager to support it. The right has maintained for decades that America’s legal culture smothers⁵ small businesses, doctors and innovators.

　　里克?佩里的竞选之路举步维艰，但他提出的“侵权法改革”却引起热议。今年六月，这位德州州长签署了 “败诉赔付”的侵权法案，规定侵权案的败诉方要补偿胜诉方的法律成本，希望以此减少一些琐细无聊的侵权诉讼。该法案得到保守分子的大力支持。几十年来，右派人士坚持认为，美国的法律文化窒息了小企业、医生和创新者。

　　Too bad, then, that the Texas law is timid. “Loser pays” is the norm in many countries, including England, Canada and Germany. But there, “loser pays” is the rule in most torts. The Texas bill awards legal costs only for suits “that have no basis in law or in fact” and are dismissed before any evidence is gathered. Most competent lawyers can write a complaint that clears this bar. Even the Texas trial-lawyers’ association eventually endorsed⁶ Mr Perry’s law.

　　糟糕透顶的是，德州的这项法律太过小心。在英格兰、加拿大、德国等许多国家，“败诉赔付”已是处理侵权纠纷的常规标准，不过在这些国家这一规定适用于多数侵权案的裁定，而德州“败诉赔偿”法律只适用于那些“缺少法律或事实基础”且在证据收集前就被撤案的诉讼。大多数合格的律师能够写出避开这个障碍的诉状。即便德克萨斯州辩护律师联合会最终也同意了佩里的这个法案。

　　Only one other state, Alaska, has loser-pays, and only for a portion of fees. More intriguingly⁷, Florida imposed “loser-pays” in 1980 for medical-malpractice cases. The number of claims dropped, but the average award rose, suggesting that more high-merit cases got their day in court while low-merit filings were deterred⁸ or settled for less. But many losing plaintiffs were too poor to pay the winners’ costs, while in one case a losing defendant⁹ had to pay millions for the plaintiff’s legal fees. Even doctors supported the law’s repeal¹⁰ in 1985.

　　还有另外唯一一个实行败诉偿付的州，那就是阿拉斯加，但这里败诉方支付的仅是胜诉方法律成本的一部分。更有趣的是，1980年佛罗里达州在处理医疗事故案例时就使用过“败方赔偿”制度。这种制度的实施使诉讼的数量下降了，但平均裁决赔偿额提高了，这表明，诉诸法律的更多的是那些一方获胜把握比较大的案子，而那些胜算不大的侵权纠纷，诉讼数量或判决数量都减少了。但是，有很多败诉的原告生活穷困，无力支付对方的法律成本，而在另一起诉讼中，败诉的被告要支付原告数百万元的法律费用。在1985年，连医生都支持废除这项法律。

　　Marie Gryphon of the Manhattan Institute, a centre-right think-tank, who is author of a loser-pays proposal, says that Texas got “much less than half a loaf”, and that Florida was spooked too quickly. She argues that loser-pays countries need legal insurance, which can be bought (for example) in England for just ?100-200 ($150-300) after an alleged¹¹ loss, but before a suit is filed. Lawyers can advance the premiums¹² and add them to their bills. In other countries, such as Germany, many households carry standing¹⁴ legal insurance with a small monthly premium¹³. Ms Gryphon argues that in such a mature loser-pays market more small-value but high-merit cases would be brought, while both small “nuisance” suits and big “lottery” suits would be less attractive to lawyers.

　　中右派智库“曼哈顿研究会”的马莉?格里芬，曾提交一项败方赔付的提案，她说，德州推行的政策“远远不达到应有的水平”，而佛罗里达州在面对问题时退缩得太快。马莉认为，那些实行败诉赔付制度的国家需要有法律保险，比如，在英格兰，如果指控提出，当事人可在立案之前，花100-200英镑（150-300美元）来购买法律保险。律师也可以预付保险费并将这笔费用加在他们的账单中。在德国等其他国家，许多家庭将法律保险并入到每月缴纳的保险费中。格里芬女士认为，在“败诉赔付”制度比较成熟的国家，那些小额的“骚扰”官司和大额的“彩票”官司对律师吸引力都会减小。

　　Loser-pays has yet to be properly tried in America. Another idea, however, is in place in many states: capping damages. In the popular imagination runaway¹⁵ juries routinely impose huge non-economic damages (to punish a defendant or make up for a plaintiff’s suffering). In practice, headline-grabbing awards are often reduced by judges: the notorious $2.7m in punitive¹⁶ damages for a woman who spilled scalding McDonald’s coffee on her lap in 1994 ended up at $480,000.

　　败诉赔付制度在美国还未能充分试行，另一种思想已在多州兴起：为侵权赔偿规定最高限额。在普通民众的想像中，肆意而为的陪审团常常施以巨额的非经济损失（以惩罚被告或补偿原告的损失）。事实上，一些案值惊人的裁决常被法官人为减少，一个著名案例是，1994年，一位妇女在麦当劳腿被热咖啡烫伤，270万美元的损害赔偿最后以48万元结案。

1 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

2 prominence   

n.突出；显著；杰出；重要

参考例句：

• He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
• This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。

3 frivolous   

adj.轻薄的；轻率的

参考例句：

• This is a frivolous way of attacking the problem.这是一种轻率敷衍的处理问题的方式。
• He spent a lot of his money on frivolous things.他在一些无聊的事上花了好多钱。

4 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

5 smothers   

（使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的第三人称单数 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制

参考例句：

• Mary smothers her children with too much love. 玛丽溺爱自己的孩子。
• He smothers his hair with grease, eg hair-oil. 他用发腊擦头发。

6 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 intriguingly   

参考例句：

• Intriguingly, she gave to the music a developed although oddly malleable personality. 最神奇的是，她的音乐具有成熟却又很奇怪地极富可塑性。 来自互联网
• Intriguingly, the patients brains were riddled with tangles, but not amyloid plaques. 有趣的是，患者的大脑中充满了各缠结，但并没有粉斑。 来自互联网

8 deterred   

v.阻止，制止( deter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I told him I wasn't interested, but he wasn't deterred. 我已告诉他我不感兴趣，可他却不罢休。
• Jeremy was not deterred by this criticism. 杰里米没有因这一批评而却步。 来自辞典例句

9 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。

10 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

11 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

12 premiums   

n.费用( premium的名词复数 )；保险费；额外费用；（商品定价、贷款利息等以外的）加价

参考例句：

• He paid premiums on his life insurance last year. 他去年付了人寿保险费。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Moves are afoot to increase car insurance premiums. 现正在酝酿提高汽车的保险费。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 premium   

n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的

参考例句：

• You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
• Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后，清水便因稀而贵了。

14 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

15 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。

16 punitive   

adj.惩罚的，刑罚的

参考例句：

• They took punitive measures against the whole gang.他们对整帮人采取惩罚性措施。
• The punitive tariff was imposed to discourage tire imports from China.该惩罚性关税的征收是用以限制中国轮胎进口的措施。