Opponents, including consumer, environmental and civil rights groups, fear overburdened federal courts will not take many of the class action cases, making it harder to hold big companies accountable for their products and actions.

The House of Representatives is expected to pass the bill next week and send it to Bush for signing into law. Bush praised lawmakers for moving to rein in "junk lawsuits" he says are hurting business.

"The class action bill is a strong step forward in our efforts to reform the litigation system and keep America the best place in the world to do business," Bush said in a statement.

Class action cases allow plaintiffs to combine claims against a common defendant into one suit. The bill would authorize federal courts to hear such suits involving more than $5 million and persons or companies from different states.

The 72-26 vote marked a major victory for Republicans and business over trial lawyers and Democrats who for years barred similar proposals in the Senate.

In the end, 18 Democrats and one independent, Sen. James Jeffords of Vermont, joined 53 Republicans in passing the bill. Two Republicans were absent.

The bill's passage was helped by a larger Republican majority in the Senate and the House Republicans' pledge to accept the Senate's bipartisan compromise as it is rather than seek to pass a more radical measure, said US Chamber of Commerce legal officer Stanton Anderson.

To keep the deal with the House, Senate supporters voted down all attempts to weaken the bill with amendments.

"This should create some momentum for other legal reform bills coming along," Anderson said. Those include proposed caps on medical malpractice awards and limits on asbestos lawsuits.

Senate opponents poured scorn on the class action bill.

"This bill is one of the most unfair, anti-consumer proposals to come before the Senate in years," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada. "It slams the courthouse doors on a wide range of injured plaintiffs."

"It turns federalism upside down by preventing state courts from hearing state law claims. And it limits corporate accountability at a time of rampant corporate scandals."

The American Association of Trial Lawyers derided the bill as "dreadful public policy" sought by insurers, tobacco, drug, and chemical industries that spent millions on lobbying.