Our nation’s legal system is out of whack, and Congress could fix it this year. But unless Democrats in the United States Senate end their threat to filibuster bills that would restore fairness in asbestos and class action lawsuits, we will not have fairness in our courts. Moving critical bills through the Senate requires 60 votes to invoke what is called cloture. That simply means guys like Ted Kennedy and Patrick Leahy, ardent opponents of legal reforms cannot wax on for hours, preventing the Senate from voting on the merits of the measures.

So far, Washington’s Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell have supported the filibusters, but there may be opportunities for them to change their minds in the next few months. Compromise legislation that would set up a no-fault system to immediately and fairly compensate asbestos cancer victims and their families. Simply, it sets up medical criteria to fairly and quickly pay people who are sick.

Today, many people who have simply been exposed to asbestos at some time during their lives (as most of us have) are filing lawsuits, even though they’re not sick and may never become sick. Those speculative lawsuits are clogging the courts, forcing many seriously ill asbestos victims to wait years for relief. In fact, many of those victims die before they get their day in court.

To make matters worse, more than 70 companies in the U.S. have declared bankruptcy because of these speculative claims, leaving nothing to compensate legitimate victims. Those bankruptcies have claimed other victims, as well, because thousands of workers in those companies have lost their jobs and shareholders have seen their retirement nest eggs evaporate.

The same holds true for class action lawsuits. Many shrewd lawyers shop around for favorable state courts to file class action lawsuits against manufacturers. Filing class action claims has moved from a cottage industry to a billion dollar enterprise. Attorneys round up hundreds of potential “victims” and file a lawsuit, hoping for a quick settlement. Those attorneys collect millions or even billions in legal fees while individual plaintiffs collect as little as $15 to $25 or get coupons for new products.

Again, Cantwell and Murray have an opportunity to restore fairness in class action litigation. In early June, the Senate will consider compromise legislation by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), but they must resist the call to filibuster the measure.

We all pay the bill for these lawsuits, because the costs of litigation are added to the cost of consumer products. Those American-made products are often priced out of the market partly because when the legal costs are added in, they can’t compete with products from foreign nations.

All we are asking is that Senators have the opportunity to vote on this important legislation. If Congress truly wants to reverse the exodus of jobs to foreign countries, they need to start by cutting legal costs at home and restoring fairness in our courts.