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Tort reform 侵权法改革 IN HIS floundering campaign for president, RickPerry has at least brought one topic intoprominence: tort reform. In June the governor ofTexas signed a loser pays tort law, intended todiscourage slight or frivolous lawsuits by making losers pay the winners legal costs.Conservatives are eager to support it. The right has maintained for decades that Americaslegal culture smothers 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. TheTexas bill awards legal costs only for suits that have no basis in law or in fact and aredismissed before any evidence is gathered. Most competent lawyers can write a complaintthat clears this bar. Even the Texas trial-lawyers association eventually endorsed Mr Perryslaw. 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。 | 
