Section Newsletters

Articles on Punitive Damages

What does a personal injury plaintiff have to plead to seek punitive damages against a drunk driver? By Sean C. Burke Tort Law, April 2015 The opinion in Farris v. Sullivan sets out several of the steps that a plaintiff’s attorney should follow before seeking punitive damages against a drunk driver who has injured someone in a collision.
What does a personal injury plaintiff have to plead to seek punitive damages against a drunk driver? By Sean C. Burke Bench and Bar, April 2015 Given the recent decision in Farris v. Sullivan, when a drunk driver injures a plaintiff in a car crash and later pleads guilty to DUI, the plaintiff should be permitted to seek punitive damages at trial.
Due process does not require that punitive damages be capped at a 4-to-1 ratio with compensatory damages By Devlin J. Schoop Federal Civil Practice, May 2004 In Mathias v. Accor Economy Lodging, Inc., No. 03-1010 (7th Cir. Oct. 21, 2003), the Seventh Circuit held that a jury verdict, in which punitive damages exceeded compensatory damages by more than four times a single-digit ratio, was not unconstitutionally excessive in violation of due process.
The effects of Gore and Campbell on punitive damages and the implications of those decisions in arbitration By Bruno J. Tassone & Scott Gilbert Alternative Dispute Resolution, March 2004 The amount of punitive damages awarded varies greatly from case to case.

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