Torts and Compensation Systems

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As firearm regulation remains a heated topic across the United States, some litigants and policymakers look to the private law to achieve regulatory aims. This panel will provide an up-to-date, critical examination of the ability of private law to fill that role. The panelists will discuss trends in past and current civil litigation, the potential for lawsuits against gun manufacturers after the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, the role of insurance as a regulatory tool, the considerations that lead government entities to engage in civil lawsuits, and the comparison between this and other public health issues that have attracted private-law responses: alcohol, junk food, and tobacco.