Anne Andrews, the new president of the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association, congratulated

other officers and award-winners Saturday evening in Newport Beach. In her swearing-in speech,

Andrews called on her members to support the courts and judicial salaries during the current economic

downturn. ?We can?t sit idly by and let budgetary concerns whittle away our core values,? she said. A

partner in Irvine?s Andrews & Thornton who specializes in mass tort cases involving drugs and medical

devices, Andrews also promised to oppose Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger?s call for a $250,000 cap on

pain-and-suffering damages in all tort cases. ?Such an artificial limit only fosters the crass calculation

[by businesses] that even if we are caught, we can afford the consequences,? Andrews said. The

justice system must remain ?free of inappropriate political interference,? she said. <!-- Trial By Fire -->