So it is rather curious that many who say they are opposed to government bureaucracy and top down direction of the economy are also opposed to the more traditional legal practices that were developed by our ancestors. Wonks Anonymous refers specifically to the lawsuit and the body of common law called tort law.

Because really all that a tort is a claim for recompense for damages caused on a person or property by some other. It is a means to enforce our rights to property and personal integrity. And is it not basic libertarian doctrine that the purpose of government is to enforce just these rights?

And Wonks Anonymous could not imagine a more libertarian means of enforcement in the real world. People with grievances can bring suits in courts that are open to everyone. Even those with limited income but a good cause have a remedy open to them because entrepreneurial lawyers are willing to represent them on speculation of large awards.

Sure some of the lawyers may not be the most savory of persons, motivated by greed, but we all know from Adam Smith that the outcome of market processes really have nothing to do with the morality and intents of the actors.

The rules of the game are well known and the final decision is made by a jury of ordinary citizens who embody the wisdom of the people.

If you do not want intrusive government regulation, how else are you going to make sure that citizens do not violate the persons and property of other citizens?

Or maybe what the proponents of tort reform really want is to restrict our access to the courts and thereby limit our ability to protect our persons and property from our corporate betters.