LEGISLATION NEEDED FOR Y2K LAWSUITS

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee recently approved one of several bills before Congress aimed at averting lawsuits related to Year 2000 computer breakdowns. If the bill is ever to become law, the Republican sponsor says supporters must overcome Democratic resistance.

"I know no Y2K bill that isn't bipartisan is going to pass," Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said before the committee of which he is chairman voted 10-7 in favor of the legislation. The only Democrat to vote for the bill was Sen. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., a co-sponsor with Hatch. Earlier this month, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., used a straight party-line vote to move a similar bill through the Commerce Committee he leads. A similar measure is pending in the House.

The Hatch-Feinstein bill would establish a 90-day grace period so companies could fix computer problems before suits go forward. It would encourage alternatives to lawsuits and put limits on class action suits. It would cap punitive damages at three times compensatory damages or $250,000, whichever is greater; if a small business is involved, whichever is less.

Hatch quotes the much-cited figure of $1 trillion as the estimate for litigation over Year 2000 computer problems unless steps are taken to block frivolous lawsuits. "Make no mistake ... this super litigation threat is real, and if it substantially interferes with the computer industry's Y2K repair efforts, the consequences for America could be dire," Hatch said.

Hatch, Feinstein and McCain are absolutely correct. Their effort to curb lawsuit abuse is crucial to seeing whether America's political leadership can, at the dawn of the 21st Century, address and surmount the challenges presented by the Y2K problem. If instead of meeting these very real challenges, Y2K becomes another bonanza for the personal-injury lawyers of the trial bar, all Americans will lose. The stakes are high. Both houses of Congress should pass one of these bills as soon as reasonably possible.