Don Vito Corleone
Elite
- Feb 10, 2000
- 30,029
- 67
- 91
Teckmaster:
See my post just above for more info on the coffee case - I am amazed how often that case is still used (IMO improperly) as an example of torts suits gone mad. See the real facts at this website, and think how you would feel if your grandmother or other lived one were so badly burned by McDonald's coffee after they had already had 700 injury claims against them for their outrageously scorching brew.
If you want a real example of bogus punitive damages, get a load of this:
In Alabama, a doctor purchased a new BMW (I think it was a 5-series) at a dealership. It developed that the car had received minor paint damage, and been completely repainted before being sold as a new car. The plaintiff, obviously, took issue with this, and sued BMW of America for the full purchase price of the car, on the premise that he had been deceived by BMW's representation that this was a new car, and also asked for $500,000 in punitive damages. When subsequent discovery revealed that BMW had done this many times previously, he upped his demand to $4 million.
The jury agreed and gave him $4,000 in actual damages, and, as punitive damages, gave him the full $4 million, on the theory that this amount represented the diminished value of each of the 1,000 cars which BMW had repainted prior to selling them.
This was the only case in United States history in which the United States Supreme Court has reversed an award of damages because they were so "grossly excessive" that they violated BMW's due-process rights.
See my post just above for more info on the coffee case - I am amazed how often that case is still used (IMO improperly) as an example of torts suits gone mad. See the real facts at this website, and think how you would feel if your grandmother or other lived one were so badly burned by McDonald's coffee after they had already had 700 injury claims against them for their outrageously scorching brew.
If you want a real example of bogus punitive damages, get a load of this:
In Alabama, a doctor purchased a new BMW (I think it was a 5-series) at a dealership. It developed that the car had received minor paint damage, and been completely repainted before being sold as a new car. The plaintiff, obviously, took issue with this, and sued BMW of America for the full purchase price of the car, on the premise that he had been deceived by BMW's representation that this was a new car, and also asked for $500,000 in punitive damages. When subsequent discovery revealed that BMW had done this many times previously, he upped his demand to $4 million.
The jury agreed and gave him $4,000 in actual damages, and, as punitive damages, gave him the full $4 million, on the theory that this amount represented the diminished value of each of the 1,000 cars which BMW had repainted prior to selling them.
This was the only case in United States history in which the United States Supreme Court has reversed an award of damages because they were so "grossly excessive" that they violated BMW's due-process rights.
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