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The Sky Has Not Fallen Yet On Punitive Damages In Admiralty Cases, John Paul Jones

Law Faculty Publications

As surely everyone knows, the United States Supreme Court has recently brought the Due Process Clause to bear on awards of punitive damages made pursuant to state law. The law of the land now includes a judicially manageable standard that protects a defendant otherwise liable for punitive damages from awards that are so excessive as to be unfair, that is, arbitrary and capricious. Punitive damages are usually assessed by juries, subject to review by trial and appellate courts. This initiative has sparked considerable controversy, and the exact parameters of the constitutional standard are still far from certain Into this situation …