The recent announcement that a group of personal-injury trial lawyers, led by Mikal Watts and Frank Herrera and state legislators Roland Gutierrez and Carlos Uresti, have bailed out the Bexar County Democratic Party, has been greeted by some as a sign that the beleaguered local party has finally turned a corner.

In 2008, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) was hit by three hurricanes -- Dolly, Ike and personal injury trial lawyers. Claims arising out of the hurricanes have resulted in millions of dollars in legal fees paid by TWIA to plaintiff lawyers. 

Texas lawmakers overseeing insurance issues pocketed tens of thousands of dollars in windstorm-related fees and commissions, even as their committees were responsible for overseeing the state-run Texas Wind Insurance Association— an agency under fire for being inefficient and allegedly corrupt.

Many suits never go to trial, not because the defendants were guilty, but because they feared losing and thus being forced to pay billions in damages and legal fees.