Opening Statement of Sen. Ernest Hollings.
Re: S 96, "The Y2K Act."
Date: February 9, 1999.
Source: This document was created by Tech Law Journal by transcribing an audio recording of the statement. Sen. Hollings can be difficult to transcribe. There may be errors.

McCain: ... I would like to ask Senator Hollings for his support and -- [Laughter from the audience.]

Hollings: I really came, Mr. Chairman, for a moment, puzzled by, actually, the introductions that you made. And, listening to your comments about ambulance chasing litigants -- making wealthy lawyers wealthier -- I'd like to say a word first about wealthy lawyers. This town is full of them. I want to later show you -- I'd be glad to get a copy -- of the arbitration settlement for legal fees in the tobacco case down in the state of Florida.

[Further discussion of the tobacco settlement omitted.]

The arbitration panel, Senator Rockefeller, determined that in no year during the thirty year period that they would be paying out, that in no year would the amounts exceed $500,000,000.00 for lawyers collectively. Now, that was automatically a $100,000,000.00 savings for the companies, because the companies were  paying this bill of allowance crowd, down here, sitting on their oriental rugs, and mahogany walls, with so many billable hours. And they were paying out $600,000,000.00 per year. So the companies swooped that up in a flash, saying, "Whoopee, we've got a settlement."

[Further discussion of the tobacco settlement omitted.]

I know about wealthy lawyers. I have watched them for thirty some years. And all they go about -- there is 60,000 of them, Mr. Chairman, registered to practice. 59,000 will never see the courtroom. They are only here to fix you and me. It is God awful, to tell you the truth. So I hope we will not be introducing any of these measures here. But Tom Donahue and that Chamber crowd that doesn't know from sickum. I see them in the audience. They endorsed my opponent, who has never done anything for business. I have been honored by every business group since we have started the industrial revolution down south. And we have been put in the technical training that is now being emulated by Intel in Dublin, Ireland, to get up their plant, to get it going. Check it out. Because, I had Andy Grove in, and he talked about this particular bill, and he said it wasn't any problem. He said it could be some internationally.

I've got the statement from Bill Gates, over in Davos, here, last weekend. He said that this is not any problem. So, what you see in their zeal about ambulance chasing litigants approach to making wealthy lawyers wealthier, they putting in bills, as a footprint, not to have anything about discipline, but to make, well, practically, to get it, the lawyer crowd, they have got a zeal, about, incident, may.

I appreciate, Mr. Donahue, the wonderful award that you wanted to give me on the eleventh. What is today, the ninth? Yeah. It said that I had done such outstanding work last year. After the election. Can you imagine that. [Laughter from the audience.] Can you imagine that unmitigated gall. Come and try to give me an award, after they had endorsed my opposition, and said I never should have returned.

McCain: Maybe it was an oversight. [Much laughter from the audience.]

Hollings: This crowd has gotten totally out of hand. I am for the small business fellow. And what happened is -- and you see the phrase, in Davos, where they say in here, where they say there wasn't any problem, and I quote: 'The problem is that even if companies do a good job of eliminating the Y2K dependencies from their own systems, you do not know if all of your vendors have eliminated of the Y2K dependencies from their systems.' So, the vendors want to clean the shelf. It's a business proposition. Sell the old outdated, unmodified, archaic, and then start coming around and giving wonderful contracts to repair it, to take care of it. This is a business gimmick. It is absolutely against small business, and absolutely against the consumer. We are going to do everything we can to kill it.

These people up in Washington have got to sober up. They think they have got -- because they have got the Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business and everything else like that, that they have got a big political move going.

McCain: [Inaudible interjection.]

Hollings: What's that? The NFIB? They are against it now? I thought I read in this memo. I apologize. I read the memo quick. I don't know how Donahue missed that crowd. Because he works them. And they come out in an onslaught. They hash it down. I just got through with it all last year. And I feel it very keenly, because, it has been no pro-business politicians in over fifty years.

I introduced the right to work law in South Carolina. And you got this, that fellow Reed, whatever his name is, running around. And he is fighting. Because I think that he was asking for the State of South Carolina, so I could carpetbag Connecticut. Bring the industry, that you haven't got enough sense to get it up there in Connecticut. That's your worry. [Laughter from the audience.] I got it down here in South Carolina. I am the pro business Senator, and the labor unions will tell you that in a flash. But, by gosh, I have got to come up here and fight the crowd, despite the crowd that I am helping.

This is totally off base, this particular bill here. And, I hope we'll stop that -- really, panic -- we've got going about lawyers, trial lawyers, and everything else of that kind. Because, the trial lawyers know the law. And the insurance companies are diligent in the State of Connecticut, and the Senators up there know that. And it is only after they have refused, and after they have done the clients wrong, that we ever get to that. They never get the client. They never get to try the case, take it on, and pay all the expenses, and hope to win, in this wonderful system to help small business and injured parties in America. And so, I appreciate the chance to say a word here. I hope our two distinguished Senators at the table, trying to sell this measure, but the facts don't warrant it. All the facts show --

McCain: Why don't you read the statements first before you -- [Laughter from the audience.]

Hollings: No. I can tell you what the statement says. [Laughter from the audience.] We have got in Lawrence against the Railroad the fundamental law of foreseeability. And the undisputed testimony in evidence in this case should be that since1955, 56, they have had foreseeability.You and I are talking in February of 1999. So, they have got almost another year of foreseeability. But they have had forty years of foreseeability about this problem. And little business -- I just got a prescription renewed -- for my eye operation. I looked at it, and the little druggist has already got zero zero right there. The  prescription is good into next of August, and so forth. So, the little druggists on Main Street, he is already in the system.

This is a big business grab. Set a footprint, and a precedent. Finally get rid of all of the rights of the individuals. Get rid of the right to jury trial. I have seen it over the thirty years that I have been up here. Get rid of everything. Kind of that temper of ambulance chancing litigants approach to making wealthy lawyers wealthier. Thank you.

McCain: Thank you, Senator Hollings. Welcome back and congratulations. [Laughter from the audience.] Senator Rockefeller.

Rockefeller: ...