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Centerville, Ia. – Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum said today that if he’s elected president his administration would push for tort reform even though it would undoubtedly be highly unpopular with some Washington lobbyists.

“I am a lawyer, but I am not a bad lawyer. I am not one of those trial lawyers,” Santorum said. While previously serving in Congress as a Pennsylvania Republican, he said he fought for tort reform on medical liability and gun manufacturing issues.

Tort reform would involve changing the American justice system in the civil courts to reduce lawsuits and money awarded as legal damages.

I am a big tort reform guy. The trial lawyers association went after me in a big way in all five of my elections. They would not be a big fan of me and I would be in favor of reforming tort laws,” he said.

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Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum has advocated capping medical malpractice awards at $250,000, but in 1999, his wife sued her doctor over a back injury and asked for twice that amount

As ABC News reports, Santorum's wife, Karen, sued a Virginia-based chiropractor for half-a-million dollars for allegedly bungling a spinal adjustment.

The suit charged that in November 1996, Karen saw Dr. David Dolberg for a spinal alignment, according to an article by Roll Call on Dec. 13, 1999. The adjustment, however, was performed improperly and resulted in a herniated disk that caused her physical pain and emotional suffering, and required surgery and multiple doctors' visits, she alleged.

She sued for $500,000, despite the fact that her medical bills totaled approximately $18,800.

While the jury awarded Karen $350,000, a judge later reduced the amount to $175,000.

By the time of the lawsuit, then-Sen. Santorum had taken up the cause of tort reform, twice sponsoring or co-sponsoring bills limiting the non-economic awards for pain and suffering that a plaintiff could seek to $250,000.