Editor's Note: Project Lawsuit Abuse regularly highlights lawsuit abuse news from across the country. Today, David Houston, co-chairman of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, contributed a guest post for Project Lawsuit Abuse.

When I heard earlier this month that California had earned the humiliating title of the nation’s No. 1 “judicial hellhole” in the American Tort Reform Association’s 2012 Judicial Hellhole report, I have to admit I was not surprised. As a small-business owner in Los Angeles, I can personally attest to how California’s policies encourage abusive lawsuits that hurt small businesses and cost jobs.

Class actions, or lawsuits in which lawyers sue on behalf of a large group of people, are a staple of the American legal system. It seems that hardly a day passes without news of a new class action lawsuit. For instance, did you hear about the class action brought against Instagram last week?

This past year saw a lot of important developments in the world of legal reform. For instance, California passed legislation to stop abusive Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits, reform-minded Patrick Morrisey was elected as Attorney General in West Virginia, and Ohio passed laws to stop asbestos scams.

If you follow Project Lawsuit Abuse, you know that trial lawyers spend a LOT of money on lobbying. In fact, they spend more on campaign donations than any other special interest group! You also probably know their political agenda: trial lawyers want to elect lawsuit-happy judges and officials who won’t stand up against lawsuit abuse so they can continue playing the lawsuit lottery.

If you’ve ever hosted a party, you probably spent a lot of time planning it. A good party host will put serious effort into picking out food, decorations, drinks, and, obviously, music. Of course, parties don’t always go as anticipated. Things can go wrong - perhaps you burned your main course, or your friend spilled a drink all over your cute table cloth. Or, maybe an acquaintance decided to take over as DJ and play terrible music.

If you’ve been paying attention to litigation trends around the country, you’ve probably heard about the wave of concussion lawsuits that former players have brought against the NFL this year.

One obvious consequence of these lawsuits is that the NFL might have to pay billions of dollars to the plaintiffs and their lawyers. A less obvious consequence involves insurance costs. Insurance companies will be hit hard by the litigation, potentially having to pay the NFL billions.

The past week has been a good one for supporters of legal reform. First, the Ohio state legislature passed a bill that will crack down on trial lawyer asbestos scams. Now, lawmakers in Michigan have also taken steps to improve their state’s legal climate. On Friday, the Michigan House passed Senate Bill 1115 and Senate Bill 1118. These bills will, among other things, limit outrageous medical malpractice damage awards.

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.

It’s official: Madison County ranked one of nation’s worst ‘Judicial Hellholes’

You know the advertisements: a personal injury lawyer appears on TV and says that you could be entitled to a cash settlement if you have been exposed to asbestos.

These advertisements are the legacy of decades of asbestos litigation. Since this litigation began, most manufacturers and mining companies involved have gone bankrupt and set up huge dollar bankruptcy trusts, from which asbestos victims have drawn billions of dollars in compensation.

Unfortunately (and unsurprisingly), trial lawyers have found a way to exploit this system. In 2006, it was discovered that lawyers have been collecting giant payouts from the asbestos bankruptcy trusts while also suing companies without bankruptcy trusts. In other words, these lawyers have been double-dipping.

A lot of factors make California a place where people like to live and visit: movie stars, beautiful beaches, and unbelievably pleasant weather. But one issue that doesn’t make the state very appealing? Its legal climate. Today, the American Tort Reform Association released its annual survey of lawsuit abuse throughout the country, officially designating California the nation’s number one “Judicial Hellhole.”