What Are Punitive Damages in a Personal Injury Case?
Punitive damages, which are also sometimes known as exemplary damages, are different from
actual “damages” that are awarded to a plaintiff. Whereas actual damages are intended to
compensate the plaintiff for the losses he or she suffered due to the harm or injury caused by the
defendant, punitive damages go beyond actual damages because they are intended to punish the
wrongdoer. They go beyond what is necessary to compensate the plaintiff for his or her losses.
Additionally, they are intended to deter other people in the defendant’s position from making the
same choices or acting in a bad way. Legal punitive damages were first established in England in
the 1700s, and have long been a part of American civil law. Today, they are awarded in the case
that a defendant’s behavior was particularly reckless and intended to cause deliberate harm.
Punitive damages are usually restricted to tort cases, which includes personal injury cases.
However, it is a rare case when a defendant is ordered to pay a very large amount (in the millions
of dollars) to a plaintiff in a personal injury case. These are large cases that tend to attract media
attention. In reality, they do not happen often; research conducted by the U.S. Department of
Justice indicates that only two percent of tort cases involve punitive damages, and the average
punitive damages award is less than $50,000.
By law, punitive damages in the state of Virginia are capped at $350,000. While laws regarding
punitive damages differ from one state to another, the United States Supreme Court dictates that
punitive damages must be “reasonable.” Whether or not a particular punitive damages monetary
amount is “reasonable” depends on the facts of the case and the amount of criminal or civil fines
that cover similar behavior or actions. A reasonable punitive damages award also depends on the
ratio of the punitive damages to actual damages. If the ratio is 4:1 or higher, courts will treat the
punitive damages amount with doubt.
The Supreme Court has also ruled that, while a judge or jury cannot impose punitive damages
based on the actual harm the defendant’s behavior caused to people not involved in the lawsuit,
the judge or jury can consider that harm as a part of determining how serious and punishable the
defendant’s behavior was. For example, in Philip Morris U.S.A. v. Williams, which took place in
2007, the Supreme Court held that the punitive damages award could not attempt to make Philip
Morris pay for the damage caused to every single smoker who smoked the company’s cigarette
products. However, the court was allowed to consider the large number of people who had been
harmed by the products in deciding how badly Philip Morris may have acted in covering up
information that discussed the dangers of smoking.
If you wish to seek punitive damages in your personal injury case, your best course of action is
to ensure that you have the assistance of an aggressive personal injury attorney. The personal
injury attorneys of Howard, Morrison, Ross and Whelan, located in Northern Virginia, provide
highly personalized, dedicated legal services in personal injury cases. Please contact us
http://www.hmrwlaw.com/ask-a-personal-injury-attorney today for immediate attention to your
case.