How Insurers Are Combating Legal System Abuse
Witness preparation is key, with a focus on the specific facts of the case rather than generalities that could play into the Reptilian strategy.
Factors such as Reptilian Theory, social inflation, litigation funding, and advertising are influencing juries, contributing to the surge in nuclear verdicts—defined as verdicts exceeding $10 million.
The theory suggests that jurors are influenced by their instinctive desire to protect their community or family, and thus may render large awards in cases as a deterrent for future misconduct.
Public perception is shaped by various factors, such as seeing high earnings in professional sports, corporate executive compensation, and large corporate financial events.
Telling the defendant's story in a way that humanizes the corporation presents the case as a singular event to be judged on its own facts, rather than as part of a larger systemic issue.
