Where do jury awards come from out of my pocket?
No. Jury awards are generally paid for by an insurance policy that a company or professional carries. That is why the insurance industry is so anxious to pass “tort reform” – so it can reduce the money it pays injured victims. It is also why, since the 1950s, insurance companies have tried to convince Americans that jury verdicts affect jurors’ pocketbooks through higher insurance premiums. They have also tried to argue that establishing legal roadblocks in the way of injured people, i.e. “tort reform,” is the only way to reduce high insurance rates. None of this is true. Insurance companies make most of their profit, or return on net worth, from investment income. Industry insiders have admitted over and over that insurance industry business practices, especially the investment cycle (fluctuations in the stock market and interest rates) are to blame for sharp ups and downs in insurance rates, not jury verdicts.
