Several bills in the Louisiana 2026 Regular Legislative Session aim to curb excessive damage awards in Louisiana tort cases. On March 13, 2025, we discussed four of these—HB526, SB361, HB118, and HB95—in the article, “Proposed Louisiana Bills Aim to Curb Excessive Damage Awards.” As the legislative session is approaching its final adjournment, following is an update on the where the bills stand.
HB526 and SB361 are identical bills that propose to put an upper limit on what general damages a plaintiff can recover. HB526 was debated in the Committee on Civil Law and Procedure on 4/7/26, and was voted down in a 4-5 vote from going to the House floor for a vote. SB361 was referred to the Committee on Judiciary A on 3/9/26, and hasn’t advanced any further.
HB118 seeks to limit general damage awards and puts a blanket $5,000,000.00 cap on total recoverable general damages by any single plaintiff from any single defendant in a tort suit, while HB95 proposes limiting a plaintiff’s past special damages. HB118 and 95 were both referred to the Committee on Civil Law and Procedure on 3/9/26, and have not advanced any further.
The 2026 Regular Session ends June 1, 2026, so it looks unlikely any of the above bills will get passed, let alone advance any further.
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