ASSOCIATION OF TRIAL LAWYERS OF AMERICA
The Association of Trial Lawyers of America
(ATLA) is a nonprofit organization that repre-
sents the interests of personal injury attorneys.
The ATLA is the world’s largest trial bar organi-
zation, with about 60,000 members worldwide.
ATLA’s goals are to safeguard the interests of
people who seek redress for injury and to pro-
tect individuals from abuses of power. Any per-
son who is licensed to practice law in any
country, state, or jurisdiction, who is committed
to the ADVERSARY SYSTEM, and who, for the
most part, does not represent the defense in per-
sonal injury litigation is eligible for member-
ship. In 1946, a group of plaintiffs’ attorneys
involved in workers’ compensations litigation
founded the National Association of Claimants’
Compensation Attorneys (NCACCA). In 1972
NACCA became ATLA, and in 1977, the organi-
zation moved its headquarters from Boston to
Washington, D.C.
ATLA is comprised of a network of U.S. and
Canadian affiliates involved in diverse areas of
trial advocacy. It provides lawyers with the infor-
mation and professional assistance needed to
serve clients successfully and protect the civil
justice system. The ATLA is governed by its
membership through a board of governors and
national officers, who are elected at the organi-
zation’s annual convention. ATLA committees
help to set policies in critical areas,make recom-
mendations to the board of governors, and over-
see staff implementation of ATLA objectives.
The ATLA has 155 staff members, including
approximately 30 attorneys. It publishes the
monthly magazine Trial, the ATLA Law
Reporter, and the ATLA Advocate.
The ATLA’s sections, each of which encom-
passes an area of litigation practice, include
ADMIRALTY, aviation, CIVIL RIGHTS,products
liability, insurance, FAMILY LAW, and WORKERS’
COMPENSATION law. Services of the sections
include the publication of annual directories
and periodic newsletters and information
exchange. The ATLA also has organized litiga-
tion groups, which are voluntary networks of
ATLA members sharing an interest in a particu-
lar type of case, many of which involve haz-
ardous products. The groups share timely
documents and information, much of it
obtained from discovery in similar cases. The lit-
igation groups also organize programs that edu-
cate members about recent developments in
their special areas.
The ATLA has been a leading opponent of
state and federal legislative efforts to restrict the
amount of damages a plaintiff can recover for
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE or for injuries caused
by a defective product. Two of the major areas of
litigation to emerge in the early 2000s are related
to asbestos and toxic mold. For many years, the
organization has lobbied against TORT reform
bills, rebutting arguments that too many law-
suits have led to excessive costs and delays and
that juries can no longer be trusted to render fair
verdicts. The election of GEORGE W. BUSH as
president in 2000 and the gain of Republican
seats in both the House and Senate in 2002
brought the issue to the forefront.Despite vigor-
ous LOBBYING on the part of ATLA and the
launching in early 2003 of “Friends of ATLA,” an
organization of groups that support the ATLA’s
position, commentators expected that some
form of “tort reform,” such as the capping of
non-economic damages at $250,000, would
prevail.
In addition to its lobbying efforts, the ATLA
provides a specialization certification program
for trial skills and statistical compilation, as well
as a placement service. It also conducts seminars
