Legal Reform
Agenda-driven lawsuits and novel liability theories are trying to set national policy through the courts. The NAM is leading the push for a fair, predictable legal system for manufacturers.
Legal Reform
Policy belongs with elected policymakers — not the courts.
A coordinated litigation campaign is trying to set national policy through state courtrooms — from climate to consumer products — while novel liability theories, junk science and opaque litigation funding raise costs for every manufacturer. The NAM is leading the push for a fair, predictable civil justice system.
Where the NAM stands
A civil justice system that works
Manufacturers stand behind their products and answer for their conduct. What they need is a legal system grounded in sound science, uniform national rules and accountability for those who abuse it. These are the reforms the NAM is leading.
Ending Policy-by-Lawsuit
The public-nuisance playbook has moved from tobacco and opioids to climate, food and PFAS. Through the Manufacturers’ Accountability Project, the NAM is pushing back on suits that bypass legislatures to set policy in court.
Sunlight on Litigation Funding
Third-party funders — including foreign interests — quietly finance and profit from lawsuits against manufacturers. The NAM supports registration, disclosure and limits like Michigan’s HB-5281, passed by the state House in May 2026.
Keeping Junk Science Out of Court
Trial courts must be gatekeepers for reliable expert evidence. NAM briefs helped secure the Missouri Supreme Court’s 2026 Hanshaw ruling and are pressing the issue at the U.S. Supreme Court and Federal Circuit.
Stopping Runaway Liability Theories
Courts are being asked to invent duties to people not yet conceived, apply state law to conduct in other countries and stretch liability to parties with no control. The NAM is holding the line on settled tort principles.
Curbing Class-Action Abuse
Classes built on speculative surveys and made-for-litigation expert theories raise prices for consumers. The NAM urges courts to scrutinize evidence before certifying classes — not after the settlement pressure sets in.
One Nation, Uniform Rules
Interstate commerce needs uniform federal standards — from emissions to freight transportation. The NAM defends federal preemption so 50 conflicting state liability regimes can’t balkanize manufacturing.
In the courts
The tide is turning
Courts are increasingly receptive to the case for legal reform — and the biggest test is now before the U.S. Supreme Court.
“Supreme Court review will bring much-needed clarity and uniformity to this issue and help ensure that fundamental policy decisions about energy and climate are made by the appropriate branches of government.” — Phil Goldberg, Special Counsel, Manufacturers’ Accountability Project
Sources: NAM Legal Center weekly updates, February–June 2026; Manufacturers’ Accountability Project; Michigan HB-5281 (2026).
In action
Legal reform at work in 2026
From state supreme courts to the U.S. Supreme Court, the NAM is making the case for a fair and predictable legal system.
- February 23, 2026The U.S. Supreme Court grants review in Suncor v. Boulder County to decide whether federal law precludes state-law climate-tort claims — after the NAM urged the Court to take the case.
- February 24, 2026The Missouri Supreme Court rules in Hanshaw v. Crown Equipment that trial courts must keep unreliable expert testimony out — a win the NAM supported as amicus.
- April 2026The NAM files briefs against extraterritorial liability (St. Claude v. Drexel Chemical, Tennessee Supreme Court) and speculative class-certification evidence (9th Circuit, Federal Circuit).
- April 15, 2026The NAM urges Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court to hold that climate harms cannot arise under state law in Bucks County v. BP.
- May 2026Michigan’s House passes HB-5281, a third-party litigation funding disclosure law — momentum for funding transparency nationwide.
- May 21, 2026The NAM files its merits brief in Suncor v. Boulder County, joined by 40+ amici including the administration, 27 states and 74 members of Congress. Argument is set for fall 2026.
See the NAM Legal Center in action
The NAM Legal Center is the leading voice of manufacturers in the courts. Explore the cases — including every brief in the legal reform fight — in our searchable litigation library.
