This week’s news underscores why lawsuit reform matters for every Texas family. A new analysis shows Texans now pay an average of $8,653 a year for home and auto insurance, one of the highest totals in America, with rising tort costs and nuclear verdicts driving premiums higher. National voices are also sounding the alarm about the growing “trial lawyer tax” on our economy and the surge in third-party litigation funding that threatens innovation and national security.
As always, TLR is focused on exposing these abuses, protecting consumers, and ensuring Texas continues to lead the nation in building a fair, predictable civil justice system.
What Happened: A new analysis finds that Texas families now face one of the highest insurance burdens in the United States. According to The Dallas Morning News, Texans are paying an average of $8,653 a year in combined home and auto insurance—giving Texas the sixth-highest insurance burden in the country. Recent rate spikes are significant: home insurance jumped 21% in 2023 and nearly 19% in 2024, while auto rates climbed 25% in 2023 alone. Read More
Tell Me More: Texas families face weather risks, rising home values, and higher repair costs—but the report highlights another major factor: litigation costs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce notes that Texas is one of the national leaders in year-over-year tort cost growth. States with similar burdens, like Florida, have exceptionally high litigation costs driven in part by nuclear verdicts, or jury awards of $10 million or more. When lawsuits inflate claims and verdicts balloon, insurers raise rates across the board to cover the risk. For Texas families, that means higher bills every year—whether they’ve filed a claim or not.
TLR Thoughts: Weather and growth play a role in rising premiums, but Texas cannot ignore the impact of lawsuit abuse in driving costs higher. Inflated claims, jackpot verdicts, and rising tort costs act as a hidden tax on every household, contributing to some of the highest insurance bills in the country. Texas has a long history of leading the nation in lawsuit reform, but recent trends show that vigilance is essential. To protect affordability for every family, lawmakers must continue strengthening the civil justice system to stop abusive litigation before it drives costs even higher.
What Happened: A new column by a former senior economic advisor to President Trump highlights the staggering economic cost of excessive litigation and the growing impact of third-party litigation funding on American consumers. Steve Moore warns that abusive lawsuits shrink the U.S. economy by up to $500 billion a year, with tort costs rising at twice the rate of inflation. He argues that a “trial lawyer tax” hits every household as lawsuit-driven expenses cascade through the economy, raising prices and insurance costs for families and job creators alike. Read more
Tell Me More: The column notes that abuse of the civil justice system is nothing new, from notorious jackpot verdicts to class actions where victims receive pennies while lawyers walk away with the rest. What’s new is the explosive rise of third-party litigation funding, where hedge funds and outside investors secretly bankroll lawsuits and claim a large share of the proceeds. These arrangements inflate litigation, distort incentives, and push companies toward costly settlements. Juries often believe they’re helping victims, unaware that the real beneficiaries are investors chasing payouts. Even conservative-leaning industries are now targets, as trial lawyers tailor their strategies to win support across the political spectrum.
TLR Thoughts: The “trial lawyer tax” is real, and Texans are paying it every day. Rising tort costs drive up consumer prices, inflate insurance premiums, and erode economic competitiveness across the country. Third-party litigation funding is accelerating these trends, enabling lawyers and investors to manufacture lawsuits at a scale never seen before. Texas has long led the nation in lawsuit reform, but as new tactics emerge, the need for vigilance has never been greater. Transparency, accountability, and stronger safeguards are essential to protect Texas families from abusive litigation schemes that enrich a few while raising costs for everyone.
What Happened: A new analysis warns that secretive third-party litigation funding (TPLF) is enabling foreign governments, sovereign wealth funds, and anonymous investors to weaponize the U.S. legal system against American companies. With the industry now controlling more than $15 billion in U.S. litigation assets, foreign entities can bankroll shell-company lawsuits to extract settlements, drain resources, or gain access to proprietary technology, all without ever disclosing their involvement. Read More
Tell Me More: TPLF has transformed lawsuits into an opaque investment vehicle. Funders can demand two-to-three-times returns before a plaintiff receives a dollar, giving them control over litigation strategy, settlement negotiations, and discovery decisions. This structure incentivizes prolonged litigation and blocks reasonable settlements.
The national-security threat is particularly alarming. A Russian-affiliated entity and a Chinese government-controlled fund have both been linked to U.S. litigation campaigns, revealed only because of rare court-ordered disclosures. Patent lawsuits are a prime target: major tech companies report that over half of the patent claims they face are now believed to be backed by litigation funders, often involving weak or “troll” patents used to extract settlements rather than protect innovation.
TLR Thoughts: When foreign interests can secretly bankroll litigation to access trade secrets or undermine American innovators, the threat extends far beyond the courtroom, it reaches into national security and economic competitiveness. Transparency in third-party litigation funding isn’t optional; it is essential. Texans depend on a fair, predictable legal system to attract employers, protect intellectual property, and safeguard economic growth. Texas has been a national leader in reining in abusive litigation, and the rise of covert foreign-funded lawsuits underscores why continued vigilance is needed. Reforms that expose hidden funders and block foreign-state interference are vital to keeping Texas competitive and protecting American innovation.
That’s what the average Texas family now pays each year for home and auto insurance — one of the highest totals in the country. Lawsuit abuse and rising tort costs are a major driver behind these skyrocketing premiums.
