WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform has once again ranked West Virginia as the worst in the country for its business legal climate, according to a news release.

"Lawsuit Climate 2008: Ranking the States," which is an annual assessment of state liability systems conducted by Harris Interactive, was released Wednesday by the U.S. Chamber. West Virginia ranked last among the 50 states for the third year in a row.

"While there is still more to do, Gov. Manchin and the West Virginia Legislature have started taking steps to improve the state's legal climate," ILR President Lisa Rickard, said in a news release. "However, changing the law isn't enough -- states also need to make sure their courts correctly and reasonably apply the law."

The survey asked 957 senior attorneys to evaluate up to five states in which they were "very" or "somewhat familiar" with that state's litigation environment.

Kentucky ranked 29th among the 50 states overall, and Ohio ranked 32nd.

Here's how West Virginia ranked on the 12 factors considered in the survey.

Having and enforcing meaningful venue requirements, 50th; overall treatment of tort and contract litigation, 50th; treatment of class action suits and mass consolidation suits, 50th; punitive damages, 45th; timeliness of summary judgment or dismissal, 49th; discovery, 48th.

Scientific and technical evidence, 49th; non-economic damages, 50th; judges' impartiality, 50th; judges' competence, 48th; juries' predictability, 48th; and juries' fairness, 48th.

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