Tort reforms and monetary caps have put Texas at the top of thelist of states with the best tort cost environment, while Vermontpicks up the rear, according to a new study.

The U.S. Tort Liability Index: 2006 Report, published by thePacific Research Institute, ranks all 50 states in terms ofrelative tort burdens and relative tort reforms.

“By placing monetary caps on damages and instituting a widerange of tort reforms, state officials have made Texas veryattractive for businesses–it's no surprise that the state has had astrong economy,” said study author Lawrence McQuillan.

In addition to Texas, the top five states were Colorado, NorthDakota, Ohio and Michigan.

At the bottom were Vermont, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvaniaand Maryland.

The higher-ranking states tended to be in the Rocky Mountainsand Great Plains, with some top performers–New Hampshire, Ohio,Texas and Virginia–distributed across the country.

The poorest-ranking states tended to be clustered in theNortheast and on the southern border. The Deep South and parts ofthe Southeast also ranked poorly.

Neil Alldredge, senior director of state advocacy for NAMIC,noted: “It's not surprising that Texas leads the nation in thiscategory. The legislature has adopted substantial reform over thelast few years, and in many cases those have become models forother states to follow.”

The states that are well positioned to remain at the top infuture rankings are those with relatively low monetary tort lossesthat have also enacted some significant reforms that will lowerfuture losses as well. These states include Kansas, Michigan,Texas, Utah and Virginia.

States that are poised to fall in future rankings, or remain atthe bottom, are states with relatively high monetary tort losses.They also have significant threats that have enacted few if anycomprehensive reforms. These states include Alabama, Florida,Illinois, Pennsylvania and Vermont.