House Majority Leader K. Joseph Shekarchi introduced a bill that would protect defendants who settle in the Ringling Bros. case against lawsuits from fellow co-defendants.

PROVIDENCE — A lawsuit from eight acrobats who plunged to the Dunkin’ Donuts Center floor during a circus performance five years ago is the latest high-profile case — after 38 Studios and the St. Joseph pension collapse — in which lawmakers may use a provision in state law to actively encourage settlements.

House Majority Leader K. Joseph Shekarchi last week introduced a bill that would protect defendants who settle in the Ringling Bros. case against lawsuits from fellow co-defendants. He said Tuesday he filed the bill with the understanding it could help the quasi-state Rhode Island Convention Center Authority, which owns the Dunkin’ Donuts Center and is one of the defendants in the case.

In a lawsuit filed in Superior Court in 2016, the women injured when rigging failed during an aerial hair hanging act asked for unspecified damages for pain and suffering, medical costs and lost wages…

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