Watch the documentary "Hot Coffee" and answer the following questions. It's all about tort reform and caps on damages, and the documentary won awards at the Sundance Film Festival several years ago. It's a great film, although it's very one-sided, as there's only a very short statement by anyone from the pro-tort reform side, and as we know, especially in the legal field, there are always two sides to every story. If you thought you knew the facts of the famous McDonald's Hot Coffee case, this film may surprise you.

We, the voters of Texas, amended our Constitution a number of years ago to cap damages in civil lawsuits. It was after a supposedly "grass roots" campaign by people who were fed up with outrageous verdicts. Turns out all those campaigns were funded by insurance companies and doctor organizations, as the film references.

Be sure to print out these questions before you begin watching.Here's the link to the movie:

https://tubitv.com/movies/310498/hot-coffee(Links to an external site.)

1. What are two new or surprising things you learned about the McDonald's coffee case?

1. How much money did Colin's parents end up getting from their lawsuit after the tort caps were applied?

1. How many different segments were there in the documentary? Which of the segments did you find to be most interesting or compelling and why?

1. What are caps on damages? Who implements them?

1. There are two sides to every story. What argument would you make as to why tort reform is needed?