The Legislative priority

Delaware State Chamber of Commerce | Wilmington DE 19899
  • Visit
    • New Castle County
    • Kent County
    • Sussex County
    • Relocate to Delaware
    • First State Kids
  • Advocacy
    • Take Action
    • District Maps
    • Legislative Roster
    • Policy Priorities
    • Political Action Committee
    • Legislative Priority Blog
  • About Us
    • Governance
    • Our Team
    • Affiliates >
      • Delaware Manufacturing Association
      • Delaware Retail Council
      • The Partnership, Inc. >
        • Delaware Principal for a Day
        • Superstars in Education >
          • JHTAward
          • SSE Winners Archive
        • Intern Delaware
        • Delaware Young Professionals Network
    • Committees >
      • Small Business Alliance
    • News & Media >
      • Chamber News
      • Member News
      • Delaware Business Magazine
      • Podcast
      • Advertise with the Chamber
      • DSCC Daily
    • Certificates of Origin
    • JobBank
    • Internships
    • Contact
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Annual Events >
      • Annual Dinner
      • Spring Manufacturing & Policy Conference
      • Superstars in Education
      • End-of-Session Legislative Brunch
      • Chamber Chase
      • Delaware Networking Station
      • Developing Delaware
      • Superstars in Business
      • Taste of Delaware
    • Webinars
    • Member Calendar
  • Membership
    • Why the State Chamber
    • Join a Lead Group
    • Membership Application
    • Member Login
  • Directory

Delaware Loses Top Spot in Legal Climate Survey

9/13/2017

0 Comments

 
by James DeChene

Since 2002 Delaware had been ranked #1 in The Institute for Legal Reform’s Harris Poll Lawsuit Climate Survey. This year’s survey finds Delaware dropping to #11.

According to the report, “Participants in the survey were comprised of a national sample of 1,321 in-house general counsel, senior litigators or attorneys, and other senior executives at companies with at least $100 million in annual revenue who indicated they: (1) are knowledgeable about litigation matters; and (2) have firsthand, recent litigation experience in each state they evaluate.”

While Delaware still scores high in key element categories of scientific and technical evidence, trial judges' competence, quality of appellate review, and enforcing meaningful venue requirements, it fell significantly in Treatment of Class Action Suits and Mass Consolidation Suits (from #1 to #26) and Trial Judges’ Impartiality (down to #15).

When I asked about specifics that were factors in Delaware’s drop, I was given a handful of recent court decisions and specific pieces of legislation passed by the General Assembly. From my perspective, no one decision or bill by itself precipitated the drop, instead the reasons for the decline seem to be a shift away from supporting what made Delaware a top corporate legal environment for so long. In fact, even though Delaware scored #1 in 2015, I was given warnings then about a potential slide in rankings if Delaware continued to focus on legislation and issued court decisions that were increasingly plaintiff friendly.

I’ve written about these issues before, and seemingly often, which include Delaware’s approach to abandoned property, the fee shifting debate that took place a few years ago resulting in the passage of SB75 that reversed the “loser pays” model of litigation, and the ATP Tours, Inc. v. Deutscher Tennis Bund decision that precipitated SB75.

In fact, over the last few years, Delaware’s cache has dropped when reviewed by other organizations as well. For example:
  • Forbes ranked Delaware 22nd among the states in 2016. The ranking lauded the state’s positive economic outlook, as shown by its increase in jobs and its business-friendly corporate law. Forbes’ cited Delaware’s low business costs and strong labor supply among its most positive factors, but gave Delaware poor marks for its quality of life, regulatory environment, and economic climate. This year marks a continued fall on the Forbes rankings from 11th in 2014 and 17th in 2015.
  • Delaware also fell in CNBC’s “America’s Top States for Business” rankings. Delaware ranked 40th in 2017, its lowest score in recent years. It placed 37th in 2016, 38th in 2015, and 38th in 2014. Once viewed by CNBC as first in the nation for its business friendliness, Delaware came in 22nd in that category. The state’s greatest challenges are its high cost of living, education system, high cost of doing business, and lack of infrastructure. Its greatest drops from 2016, however, were in the areas of its economy (26th to 39th), quality of life (28th to 37th) and business friendliness (11th to 22nd).
  • Chief Executive’s annual survey of CEO’s ranked Delaware 16th in 2017, a slight drop from the prior year. CEOs praised Delaware for public-private partnerships and new science-based businesses. Delaware placed 23rd in 2014, 20th in 2015, and 13th in 2016.
  • Delaware’s business tax climate ranks 19th among states in 2017, according to the Tax Foundation. This is a 5-point fall from 14th place in 2016 and its lowest score in recent years.
  • U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 “Best States” report ranked Delaware’s economy 9th, including 7th for business environment, 8th for growth, and 18th for employment. The state’s overall rank was 20th. This year is the first time U.S. News has ranked states.

The fact remains that the constant drip of decisions and legislation designed to support plaintiffs over business has led directly to where Delaware is today: a world where South Dakota is ranked as having the top business legal climate, and where Delaware is on the decline according to recent national ratings. 
​
One thing remains constant, however. If Delaware continues its current trend, our image will continue to suffer. Delaware relies on the billion dollars in revenue it receives each year from companies choosing to incorporate here. We should be doing what it takes to retain our corporate image if there is to be any realistic expectation of that being the case in the future.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015

    Categories

    All
    Abandoned Property
    Advocacy
    Agriculture
    Alcohol
    Amazon
    Annual Government Affairs Retreat
    Annual Networking Table Top
    Budget
    Business
    Capital Improvement
    Capital Spending
    Child Care
    Coastal Zone
    Construction And Real Estate
    Criminal Justice
    Data
    Delaware Business
    Delaware Business Roundtable
    Delaware Manufacturing Association
    Delaware Prosperity Partnership
    Developing Delaware
    Diverse Suppliers
    Economic Development
    Education
    Elections
    End Of Session Legislative Brunch
    Energy
    Envionrment
    Equal Rights
    Escheat
    Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
    Fiscal Policy
    Flame Retardants
    Global Delaware
    Government Affairs
    Grant In Aid
    Guest Post
    Gun Legislation
    Healthcare
    Identity Theft
    Infrastructure
    Insurance
    Kent County
    Labor
    Legislative Brunch And Manufacturing Conference
    Legislative Report
    Manufacturing
    Manufacturing Week
    Marijuana
    Marvin S. Gilman Bowl
    Member News
    Memorial Day
    Military Affairs
    Minimum Wage
    National Manufacturing Day
    Natural Resources And Environmental Control
    Networking
    New Economy
    Nonprofit
    Opioid And Substance Abuse
    Opioids Drugs And Alcohol In The Workplace
    Paid Leave
    Pathways To Prosperity
    Plastic Bags
    Regulation
    Renewable Energy
    Rodel
    Secretary Of State
    Sexual Harassment
    Small Business
    Small Business Alliance
    Small Business Day
    State Chamber's Annual Dinner
    Student Success 2025
    Superstars In Business
    Superstars In Education
    Sussex County
    Taste Of Delaware
    Tax
    Technology
    The Guard And Reserve Banquet
    Tobacco
    Trade
    Trade Promotion Authority
    Transportation
    Unclaimed Property
    Unemployment
    Utilities
    Vision Coaltion
    Workforce Development

    RSS Feed

Copyright Delaware State Chamber of Commerce, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.
PO Box 671 | Wilmington DE 19899
Phone: (302) 655-7221 | dscc@dscc.com | sitemap
Affiliations
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
National Association of State Chambers
​National Association of Manufacturers
National Retail Federation
  • Visit
    • New Castle County
    • Kent County
    • Sussex County
    • Relocate to Delaware
    • First State Kids
  • Advocacy
    • Take Action
    • District Maps
    • Legislative Roster
    • Policy Priorities
    • Political Action Committee
    • Legislative Priority Blog
  • About Us
    • Governance
    • Our Team
    • Affiliates >
      • Delaware Manufacturing Association
      • Delaware Retail Council
      • The Partnership, Inc. >
        • Delaware Principal for a Day
        • Superstars in Education >
          • JHTAward
          • SSE Winners Archive
        • Intern Delaware
        • Delaware Young Professionals Network
    • Committees >
      • Small Business Alliance
    • News & Media >
      • Chamber News
      • Member News
      • Delaware Business Magazine
      • Podcast
      • Advertise with the Chamber
      • DSCC Daily
    • Certificates of Origin
    • JobBank
    • Internships
    • Contact
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Annual Events >
      • Annual Dinner
      • Spring Manufacturing & Policy Conference
      • Superstars in Education
      • End-of-Session Legislative Brunch
      • Chamber Chase
      • Delaware Networking Station
      • Developing Delaware
      • Superstars in Business
      • Taste of Delaware
    • Webinars
    • Member Calendar
  • Membership
    • Why the State Chamber
    • Join a Lead Group
    • Membership Application
    • Member Login
  • Directory