Costs of the "tort" system

As reported by the New York TImes this morning ("Study Says Malpractice Payous Aren't Rising", C1), a study by Lawrence Chimerine and Ross Eisenbrey for the Economic Policy Institute entitled "The Frivolous Case for Tort Law Change" has been added to the debate over whether or not litigation is to blame for the increase in medical malpractice premiums (among other economic maladies). This paper is available here. The EPI is a liberal think-tank engaged in economic analysis. Note that the Times article mistakenly attributes the paper to the Center for Justice and Demoracy, a lobbying group for trial lawyers. Rather, the CJ&D simply "applauded" EPI for its paper. See link.