The US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) is an advocacy group founded in 1998 by the United States Chamber of Commerce, with a focus on what it calls "tort reform."[1][2]
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ILR takes a pro-defendant stance, condemning the influence that plaintiff trial lawyers have in expanding common law through tort and securities litigation. Accordingly, ILR promotes arbitration over litigation, increased attorney-client privilege, reduced discovery, and statutory caps on damage awards.[3]
ILR is affiliated with the United States Chamber of Commerce, a non-profit trade association lobbying group representing businesses and industry associations. Through ILR, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has launched multiple lobbying efforts against trial lawyers.[4][5][6]
Critics of ILR and other tort reform organizations argue that the organizations limit the access of ordinary citizens to be compensated for harms done to them by corporations through faulty products and/or harmful services. Critics argue that such interest groups do not promote judicial efficiency, legal ethics, or any other public purpose, but merely protect corporations from the consequences of their misdeeds.[7]