Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signs lawsuit reform package

ATLANTA, Ga. - Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday signed the state’s historic attempt to rein in what his ers call frivolous and excessive jury awards.

In an afternoon ceremony at the Georgia Capitol, Kemp signed Senate Bill 68, which he named as one of his key legislative priorities before the 2025 Georgia General Assembly.

The overhaul of Georgia’s civil litigation system will make it harder to sue businesses for things that happen on their property, a concept known as premises liability. But survivors and families of victims say it could also make it harder for them to seek justice against wrongdoers.

Small business owners in the state said they’re frustrated with constantly having to pay huge settlements over lawsuits they feel are frivolous. Kemp has gone so far as to term it “lawsuit abuse,” and many in the legislature agreed, including several Democrats who crossed the party aisle to the bill.

The bill raises the threshold for holding businesses able for what happens on their property. Under the proposed legislation, businesses would have to have prior knowledge of a safety issue or a wrongdoing employee in order to be sued.

Opponents of the bill said nothing in its language actually required insurance companies to lower their rates.

The bill was heavily ed by the business community, which said insurance s were rising so rapidly that some small businesses couldn’t afford it anymore.

In recent years, the legal industry has spent tens of millions of dollars on advertising, promising big payouts in the six-or-seven-digit range for accidents, slip and falls, medical malpractice and emotional distress. Ironically, some of the lawmakers pushing hardest for tort reform are, themselves, attorneys.

State Rep. Vance Smith, R-Pine Mountain, said he was fired from his job as CEO of the Harris County Chamber of Commerce after voting against Kemp’s tort reform package.

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