Masters of Trial Law Ep. 7 features AAJ CEO Linda Lipsen: Protecting Consumers from Corporate Harm
Hosts Bill Gibbs and Ken Lumb, Equity Partners at Corboy & Demetrio, take Episode 7 of Masters of Trial Law video podcast on the road to the historic Hotel del Coronado on the beautiful island of Coronado, CA, during the recent American Association for Justice (AAJ) convention.
The episode, Protecting Consumers from Corporate Harm, features special guest, Linda Lipsen, the CEO of AAJ and one of the fiercest consumer advocates in the country.
Podcast viewers learn about Linda and AAJ’s crucial advocacy work, including the fight to end forced arbitration, corporate immunity, and product safety.
Also, Hawaii trial lawyer and longtime AAJ leader, Wayne Parsons, joins the podcast to discuss Trial Lawyers Care, an AAJ pro bono project started in the days following the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks.
In the first segment of the podcast, Linda Lipsen explains that AAJ is a national organization of trial lawyers who represent individuals, not corporations, and that AAJ supports trial lawyers through state-level advocacy and education.
Lipson highlights AAJ’s fight to protect an individual’s right to a civil jury trial, explaining that companies increasingly and quietly insert and bury forced arbitration clauses in everyday contracts, causing consumers to unknowingly waive their rights. She explains that AAJ has supported legislation ending forced arbitration in sexual assault and harassment cases and that it continues pushing the FAIR Act to make arbitration voluntary.
Linda shares a personal story about encountering forced arbitration, herself, when placing her mother in a nursing home, illustrating how unavoidable and unfair these clauses have become. Lipson argues that corporations seek immunity from liability to avoid accountability, and that a civil justice system is essential for consumer safety. She explains it is the work of trial lawyers that’s been key to the creation of safer products and improved product standards.
Finally, Lipson warns about Section 230 immunity for online companies and the dangers of screen addiction and harmful algorithms, urging reforms to better protect children and consumers. Enacted in 1996 as part of the Communications Decency Act, Sec. 230 immunity is a foundational federal law that protects online platforms and users from legal liability for content posted or created by third parties.