Washington, D.C. —  Senator John Thune today applauded the Senate’s passage of legislation that will begin to restore fairness to the judicial system.

“We have finally passed class action reform that will begin to restore fairness to the judicial system in this country,” Thune said. “Our tort system is broken. And without the necessary reforms beginning with class action lawsuits, we deny our citizens not only fair and efficient access to justice, but we allow this problem to pull our economy downward.

“This was a successful bipartisan effort and shows what can be accomplished when we work together. The Senate is delivering on the voters’ expectations. I hope this vote is the first of many bipartisan accomplishments.”

This morning, Thune urged the Senate to pass class action reform during his first-ever Senate floor speech.

“We have a full agenda ahead of us,” Thune said in his speech. “The American people have put their trust in us to make this nation even greater than it is today. And we cannot let them down.”

The Class Action Fairness Act of 2005 passed 72-26. Thune was a co-sponsor.