Nursing home can’t limit remedies for negligence 
Published: November 30, 2011
Tags: American Health Lawyers Association, arbitration, negligence, nursing home litigation, punitive damages, wrongful death
A nursing home sued for wrongful death could not enforce a limitation of remedies clause in its admissions contract that required arbitration and precluded punitive damages, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled in reversing judgment.
Human trafficking victim may seek punitive damages 
Published: November 9, 2011
Tags: punitive damages, Trafficking Victims Protection Act
Federal law providing compensation for the victims of human trafficking authorizes the recovery of punitive damages by a woman who alleged that she was the victim of a sex-for-drugs conspiracy, the 9th Circuit has ruled in reversing judgment.
R.J. Reynolds must pay $28 million in smoker lawsuit 
Published: September 6, 2011
Tags: cancer, negligence, product liability, punitive damages, R.J. Reynolds, strict liability, tobacco litigation
A tobacco company must pay $28 million to a woman who was diagnosed with cancer after smoking cigarettes for over 25 years, a U.S. District Court in Connecticut has ruled in denying a motion for a new trial.
Lorillard liable under state consumer protection statute 
Published: September 2, 2011
Tags: consumer protection, Lorillard Tobacco Co., negligence, punitive damages, tobacco litigation, Top Ten Jury Verdicts of 2010, warranty of merchantability
A Massachusetts judge has found that the manufacturer of Newport cigarettes violated the state’s consumer protection law by breaching the implied warranty of merchantability and by breaching the voluntary duty it undertook to accurately report to the public its research and knowledge concerning the health risks of smoking cigarettes.
Punitive damages claim does not survive death 
Published: August 12, 2011
Tags: punitive damages
The right to punitive damages does not survive the death of the wrongdoer, the Iowa Supreme Court has ruled.
S.C. governor signs tort reform bill limiting punitives into law 
Published: August 5, 2011
Tags: compensatory damages, damages caps, punitive damages, tort reform
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has signed a new tort reform law that caps punitive damages.
Exxon hit with $1 billion in punitive damages 
By:
Danny Jacobs
Published: July 1, 2011
Tags: Exxon, gasoline leak, punitive damages
Exxon Mobil Corp. has been hit with $1 billion in punitive damages for a 2006 gasoline leak in rural Baltimore County, Md., sources close to the litigation said Thursday.
That’s in addition to about $495 million in compensatory damage awards that were made public Wednesday.
Country law firm wins $66 million for church beatings 
By:
Sylvia Hsieh
Published: June 21, 2011
Tags: emotional distress, outrage, punitive damages
A self-described “country lawyer” in Texarkana, Texas has won a $66 million jury award for two men beaten as teenagers as part of the discipline and control meted out by the leader of a church ministry.
Qwest must pay $18M punitive award 
Published: May 24, 2011
Tags: punitive damages
A telecommunications company must pay $18 million in punitive damages for failing to maintain its wooden utility poles in a safe condition, the Colorado Supreme Court has ruled.
Punitives barred in nursing home neglect case 
By:
Pat Murphy
Published: March 28, 2011
Tags: nursing home litigation, punitive damages
A claim for punitive damages in a nursing home neglect case abated with the death of the resident who allegedly suffered injuries as the result of inadequate care, the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled in affirming judgment.
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