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Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Law
Due Process And Punitive Damages: The Error Of Federal Excessiveness Jurisprudence, A. Benjamin Spencer
Due Process And Punitive Damages: The Error Of Federal Excessiveness Jurisprudence, A. Benjamin Spencer
Faculty Publications
The Supreme Court, in a line of several cases over the past decade, has established a rigorous federal constitutional excessiveness review for punitive damages awards based on the Due Process Clause. As a matter of substantive due process, says the Court, punitive awards must be evaluated by three "guideposts" set forth in BMW of North America v. Gore: the degree of reprehensibility of the defendant's conduct, the ratio between punitive and compensatory damages, and a comparison of the amount of punitive damages to any "civil or criminal penalties that could be imposed for comparable misconduct." Following up on this pronouncement …
Judges, Juries, And Punitive Damages: Empirical Analyses Using The Civil Justice Survey Of State Courts 1992, 1996, And 2001 Data, Theodore Eisenberg, Paula L. Hannaford, Michael Heise, Neil Lafountain, Brian Ostrom, Martin T. Wells, G. Thomas Munsterman
Judges, Juries, And Punitive Damages: Empirical Analyses Using The Civil Justice Survey Of State Courts 1992, 1996, And 2001 Data, Theodore Eisenberg, Paula L. Hannaford, Michael Heise, Neil Lafountain, Brian Ostrom, Martin T. Wells, G. Thomas Munsterman
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
We analyze thousands of trials from a substantial fraction of the nation's most populous counties. Evidence across ten years and three major datasets suggests that: (1) juries and judges award punitive damages in approximately the same ratio to compensatory damages, (2) the level of punitive damages awards has not increased, and (3) juries' and judges' tendencies to award punitive damages differ in bodily injury and no-bodily-injury cases. Jury trials are associated with a greater rate of punitive damages awards in financial injury cases. Judge trials are associated with a greater rate of punitive damages awards in bodily injury cases.
Punitive Damages, Liquidated Damages, And Clauses Penale In Contract Actions: A Comparative Analysis Of The American Common Law And The French Code Civil, Charles R. Calleros
Punitive Damages, Liquidated Damages, And Clauses Penale In Contract Actions: A Comparative Analysis Of The American Common Law And The French Code Civil, Charles R. Calleros
ExpressO
Although American common law allows punitive damages for reckless or intentional torts, it will neither allow a jury to assess punitive damages for breach of contract nor permit enforcement of a contractual damages clause that is deemed to be punitive. This approach is rooted in an early Chancery practice of granting equitable relief from oppressive penal bonds and has been more recently justified as a means of facilitating efficient breach. Economic efficiency, however, can be accomplished even if punitive damages could be assessed for intentional breach, because the parties would have an incentive to negotiate a release from the first …
Significant Association Between Punitive And Compensatory Damages In Blockbuster Cases: A Methodological Primer, Theodore Eisenberg, Martin T. Wells
Significant Association Between Punitive And Compensatory Damages In Blockbuster Cases: A Methodological Primer, Theodore Eisenberg, Martin T. Wells
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
This article assesses the relation between punitive and compensatory damages in a data set, gathered by Hersch and Viscusi (H-V), consisting of all known punitive damages awards in excess of $100 million from 1985 through 2003. It shows that a strong, statistically significant relation exists between punitive and compensatory awards, a relation that replicates similar findings in nearly all other analyses of punitive and compensatory damages. H-V's claim that no significant relation exists between punitive and compensatory awards in these data appears to be an artifact of questionable regression methodology.
Punitive Damages As A Social Harm Measure: Economic Analysis Continues, Sergey Budylin
Punitive Damages As A Social Harm Measure: Economic Analysis Continues, Sergey Budylin
Sergey Budylin
This article is an attempt to determine on the economic basis the optimal amount of punitive damages in a tort case. For proper deterrence, the optimal amount of damages consists of two components. The first is the "primary losses" inflicted to the victim. The second is the "secondary losses" inflicted to the society, estimated as the amount of the defendant's illicit gains. To reflect the non-unity probability of holding the injurer liable, both components should be inflated by relevant multipliers. The overcompensatory part of the first component may be called "supercompensatory" damages; the second component - "truly punitive" damages. For …
An Erie Obstacle To State Tort Reform, Richard Henry Seamon
An Erie Obstacle To State Tort Reform, Richard Henry Seamon
Articles
No abstract provided.
2003 Texas House Bill 4: Unanimous Exemplary Damage Awards And Texas Civil Jury Instructions., Patricia F. Miller
2003 Texas House Bill 4: Unanimous Exemplary Damage Awards And Texas Civil Jury Instructions., Patricia F. Miller
St. Mary's Law Journal
Lawmakers and other supporters of tort reform generally describe enacted tort reform legislation as having a positive effect on consumers. But tort reform can create new hurdles for plaintiffs seeking damage awards in civil litigation. The Texas Legislature’s 2003 House Bill 4 (H.B. 4) amendment to the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code (Code) represents the most recent example of major tort reform in Texas. It has yet to be seen whether H.B. 4 will meet promised expectations. What is clear is H.B. 4 will adversely affect Texas plaintiffs seeking exemplary (punitive) damages from a jury. The H.B. 4 amendment …