Editor's Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Melissa Landry, Executive Director of Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse Watch, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

Hot coffee. Some would say it is just as much a part of our culture as baseball and apple pie. Every morning millions of Americans wake up and start their day with a good ole cup of Joe. Whether your daily ritual includes a fancy four-dollar Starbucks latte, or it is the smell of your own coffee pot that draws you out of bed in the morning—chances are that if you are like most people you like your coffee hot. Not lukewarm, but hot. (Otherwise you would have an iced coffee, I suppose.)

An unusual issue has brought New Mexico’s legal climate into question: trips to outer space. New Mexico has long sought to be a leader in the space travel industry, recently spending $209 million to complete a spaceport. The spaceport is intended for use by private companies that take tourists on commercial flights to space.

Unfortunately, New Mexico’s poor legal climate has consistently gotten in the way of the state’s space tourism ambitions. Because of liability issues, many space companies have refused to locate in New Mexico. Finally, one company, Virgin Galactic, agreed to operate in New Mexico. But the agreement is conditional: Virgin Galactic will leave if the state doesn’t pass legal reform.

Editor's Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Travis Akin, Executive Director of Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

Breaking a record in sports is a big deal. When a player breaks a record it is something significant and when a player shatters a previous record, well people really take notice.

Illinois is home to one of the worst legal climates in the nation, with Madison County, IL and Cook County, IL both earning shameful spots on the Judicial Hellholes report. The plaintiff friendly reputation of the two courts attracts personal injury lawyers from across the nation who want to cash in on the lawsuit lottery.

Editor's Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, Tom Scott, Executive Director of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

We’re back with another ridiculous lawsuit! Here’s a question: if you had a crippling phobia of young people, would you decide to become a high school teacher? Probably not, right? Well, that’s exactly what Ohio schoolteacher Maria Waltherr-Willard did. Waltherr-Willard taught Spanish and French at a high school, but her district transferred her to a middle school due to staffing needs.

Just last week, we told you about a new lawsuit lending bill in Indiana. If passed, the bill will help protect consumers from unscrupulous loan sharks trying to profit from the legal system. Now it looks like even more positive change is coming for Indiana, as Governor-elect Mike Pence plans to make tort reform a legislative priority for his first term.

Tort reformers have been turning up all over the internet recently. We took the liberty of rounding up some of the standouts. You may recognize a few friends of Project Lawsuit Abuse in there. Here are some of the newsmakers from around the country.

As you might know, lawsuit lending is a dangerous practice. Lawsuit lending occurs when someone takes out a loan, typically to finance medical bills or other immediate costs, while waiting for a legal settlement. While this may sound like a good idea, it’s actually very risky. Lawsuit loan sharks often charge outrageously high rates, meaning that settlement money intended to go to victims actually goes somewhere else. In fact, it is not uncommon for people who have taken out lawsuit loans to actually end up in debt.

Back in August, we told you about how the Missouri Supreme Court made a terrible decision by overturning a law that placed a $350,000 cap on noneconomic damages to prevent outrageous, run away awards. This development was set to have serious consequences for Missouri’s healthcare system, driving away doctors and increasing costs.

Thankfully, Missouri legislators are attempting to reinstate these liability limits. They hope to introduce a constitutional amendment to override the Supreme Court’s decision.