Stop Immoral Gravy Train for Lawyers that is diverting Money from the
Most Vulnerable

Santa Fe--Money that could have been going to the state’s most vulnerable population has instead been going to trial lawyers and expert witnesses in a 20 year old lawsuit. Some state senators want a gravy train for lawyers to end and divert the funding to the developmentally disabled.

Unknown to taxpayers, the State of New Mexico has been shoveling almost $5 million a year to a small clique of lawyers and their hand-picked associates who have been serving as “expert witnesses” and “consultants” in a lawsuit that has been kept alive for 22 years.

“Enough is enough,” said State Senator Rod Adair, “We have paid nearly $75 million just to plaintiffs’ attorneys—and that money should be going to the developmentally disabled instead. Every year we do this we are effectively cheating our most vulnerable citizens out of $20 million.” (The Federal Government would match the $5 million with an additional $15 million if the funds were spent on the disabled instead of given to lawyers.)

“This lawsuit is sucking a full 1% of the entire state health budget for a small group of lawyers and their friends,” Adair said, “The Department of Health should be spending these millions each year on the needs of the developmentally disabled,” Senator Adair said. “This has been going on for years and no one has asked why? I am asking that it stop, and that it stop now.”

Senator Adair’s bill prohibits the DOH from using any funds for the purpose of paying plaintiffs’ attorneys or their expert witnesses or any other expense claimed for fiscal year 2010 beyond those already disbursed in the Jackson v. Ft. Stanton lawsuit or any other Jackson et al cases that began in 1987 or 1988.

Senator Adair said funds saved shall be appropriated for the developmentally disabilities waiver waiting list. Currently there are over 3700 New Mexicans on the waiting list to receive services for the developmentally disabled.

According to Adair, the $75 million spent on legal fees over the past 20 years could have been matched by the federal government and generated up to $300 million for the developmentally disabled.