On March 11, I joined Tiger Joyce, President of the American Tort Reform Association, and Dan Mehan, President and CEO of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in a Washington Legal Foundation webinar about the issues raised in a recently filed petition for certiorari seeking review of a $2.1 billion Missouri state-court judgment. You
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A Tribute To Andy Frey Upon His Retirement From Mayer Brown
Adding to the list of sad things that happened in 2020, my long-time friend and mentor Andy Frey retired from Mayer Brown at the end of the year. Although Andy will remain available to consult on punitive damages and other matters as needed, I will greatly miss our regular collaboration in the effort to make
Eighth Circuit Okays 25:1 Ratio In Fraud Case
Ordinarily, a ratio of 25:1 would ring the death knell for a punitive damages award. But just as a 1:1 ratio is not always a safe harbor, a double-digit ratio is not always indicative of a punitive award that exceeds constitutional bounds.
Such is the case in Adeli v. Silverstar Automotive, Inc.
Fourth Circuit Reverses Findings Of Vicarious Punitive Liability Under Title VII And North Carolina Law
Making important law on the question of vicarious liability for punitive damages, the Fourth Circuit recently reversed awards of punitive damages under Title VII and North Carolina law in Ward v. AutoZoners.
The case involved alleged peer-on-peer sexual harassment at an AutoZone store. Keith Ward, an AutoZone employee, reported to multiple supervisors that a
An Update On Recent Excessiveness Decisions: Part II
Last week, I posted the first installment of a two-part series on recent excessiveness decisions. In this second installment, I discuss two additional excessiveness decisions.
In re: Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” Marketing, Sales Practices, & Products Liability Litigation
This case involves allegations that Volkswagen used so-called defeat devices to evade federal and state emissions test procedures.
An Update On Recent Excessiveness Decisions: Part I
During the past couple of months, courts have been busy addressing excessiveness challenges to punitive damages awards. In this post, I discuss two recent decisions. In a second post, I will cover two additional decisions.
Ramirez v. TransUnion LLC
This is a class action under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). In essence, the plaintiffs
Seventh Circuit Agrees With Mayer Brown Amicus Brief That $3 Million Punitive Damages Award Was Unconstitutionally Excessive
Last summer, my colleague C.J. Summers and I posted a report about Saccameno v. U.S. Bank National Association, a Seventh Circuit case in which we had filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States.
In late November 2019, the Seventh Circuit issued an opinion reducing the punitive damages
A $6.8 Million Band Aid
Last October, I reported on the $8 billion punitive verdict returned by a Philadelphia jury against Johnson & Johnson in a case alleging that the company had failed to warn that its antipsychotic drug Risperdal could cause young men to develop breasts.
I expressed the view that a punishment of this size in an individual
If This Isn’t A Product Of Passion Or Prejudice, What Is?
By now, you’ve probably read reports of the $8 billion punitive verdict against Johnson & Johnson in an individual case alleging failure to warn that young men using its antipsychotic drug Risperdal could develop breasts. Robot-like, virtually every article about the verdict says that the verdict is likely to be reduced because it is disproportionate
Mayer Brown Submits Amicus Brief For Chamber Of Commerce In Seventh Circuit Appeal Involving Proper Application Of Punitive Damages Guideposts
Although the Supreme Court identified three guideposts for evaluating whether a punitive award is unconstitutionally excessive 23 years ago in BMW v. Gore and refined those guideposts 16 years ago in State Farm v. Campbell, lower courts continue to make conceptual errors interpreting and applying the guideposts. The Seventh Circuit will have the opportunity