American Museum of Tort Law

The American Museum of Tort Law is a museum that Ralph Nader plans to build in his hometown of Winsted, Connecticut. Originally announced in 1998,Cite web|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D03EEDA1638F93BA15754C0A96E958260|title=Nader's Museum of Liability: Corvairs, Pintos and Implants|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=1998-07-28|author=Jonathan Rabinovitz|work=The New York Times] at an expected cost of $5Cite web|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E04EED71038F931A3575BC0A96E958260|title=A Tort Museum! What Fun!|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=1998-08-02|author=Jonathan Rabinovitz|work=The New York Times] or $10 million,Cite web|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFE85B1ED71C08&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=A Museum for Trial Lawyers|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=1998-08-23|work=The San Antonio Express-News] Nader sought a way to turn abstract legal cases, on which he has spent significant time working, into interesting displays for the public. The museum plans to include a display on a number of famous cases including McDonalds' scalding coffee,Cite web|url=http://www.legalaffairs.org/issues/November-December-2005/scene_longhine_novdec05.msp|title=Display Cases|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=2005-11|author=Laura Longhine|work=Legal Affairs] flammable pajamas, asbestos, breast implants, medical malpractice and the pollution of the Love Canal.

The museum faced criticism from a number of sources, including questions on whether the museum would attract an audience and whether it would be anything more than Nader's tribute to himself.Cite web|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BG&p_theme=bg&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EADDE7BC560F4EF&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=A Totem to Torts|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=2000-10-17|author=Joanna Weiss|work=The Boston Globe] It was anticipated that the museum would open in late 2006 following eight years of planning and at a cost of more than $4 million.Cite web|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=NewsLibrary&p_multi=WRAB&d_place=WRAB&p_theme=newslibrary2&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=10A8ACE139CA3256&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Nader Keeps Faith with Museum Dedicated to American Tort Law|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=2005-06-02|work=The Republican-American] As of April 2006, Nader had raised more than half the funds necessary, despite some funders leaving the project, and the plans to use a former factory on Main Street had been approved by the town.Cite web|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=NewsLibrary&p_multi=WRAB&d_place=WRAB&p_theme=newslibrary2&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=110DF875490474D8&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Positive Verdict for Winsted Nader's Tort Museum Nears Reality|accessdate=2008-04-23|year=2006-04-07|work=The Republocan-American]

Whether the museum will be completed or not is unknown as of 2008.

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