COVID-19 Polling – December 2020

Key Findings:

Majorities across both parties maintain that elected officials should respond to the pandemic, rather than trial lawyers. 59% say those harmed by the pandemic should get assistance from policies passed by elected officials, versus just 7% who say they should get payouts from lawsuits: this is consistent from October when 63% favored assistance through policy versus 9% who favored payouts from lawsuits.

Messaging on small business receives an even stronger response: 74% say small businesses affected by COVID-19 should be supported by government grants or loans versus 6% who say lawyers should help small businesses pursue legal claims.

48% of voters agree law firms using PPP funds for lawsuit advertising is inappropriate compared to 26% who say this is appropriate. This trend holds from October when 62% called lawsuit advertising inappropriate and 24% considered this appropriate; the discrepancy in those who call advertising inappropriate was driven by a greater proportion of Unsure respondents.

The proportion of voters who say trial lawyer advertisements are annoying and take advantage of people is virtually unchanged from October: 65% said advertisements are annoying and take advantage of people in December, and 66% said the same in October.

In War On Arbitration, Consumers And Companies Both Lose

In The News

ATRA President Tiger Joyce writes how companies that end arbitration face the risk of consumer class actions, in the face of plaintiffs firms ramping up mass arbitration proceedings.