Chevron backing down?

In an earlier posting, I talked (ok, maybe I ranted, I've been doing that a little lately) about a proposed ballot initiative that was being backed by a number of large corporations, including Chevron.

Thanks to a post by Professor Childs, it appears that this ballot measure has been withdrawn and will not be submitted for the ballot here in California. According to the gentlemen at Products Liability Prof Blog, this is not the first time during this initiative cycle that "tort reformers" have been forced to pull an unpopular measure.

The law.com story about this ballot measure states that the backers of the proposed initiative pulled back because of assurances by the California legislature that they would work on this issue. Apparently there is hope by some in the legislature that a reasonable solution to this will be achieved.

On the other hand, perhaps backers of the initiative are hoping that this November, Californians will elect legislators who are more inclined to vote for so-called "tort reform".