Cogan & Power- Laws Take The Mystery Out Of Punitive Damage Awards

LAWS TAKE THE MYSTERY OUT OF PUNITIVE DAMAGE AWARDS An award of punitive damages is meant to be financial punishment for wrong-doing, and a warning against committing the same misconduct in the future. In Illinois, the current punitive damage cap, and restrictions on the application of such damages, limits a defendant's exposure. A personal injury lawyer in Chicago can pursue the damages in most cases, but the judge will ultimately decide if the jury is allowed to award them. GENERAL GUIDELINES Illinois has some of the strictest rules in the United States with regard to the application of punitive damages. In some cases, including medical malpractice suits, punitive damages are unavailable in • any instance of wrong-doing. The judge will determine if the case meets the minimum statutory requirements before giving the • jury further instructions on the award of damages. In making the case for punitive damages, a personal injury lawyer must prove the defendant responsible for causing harm to the plaintiff. During the trial, "clear and Simple accidents do not Finally, if a jury is to award punitive convincing evidence" of wrong-doing motivated by malice must be provided. qualify for punitive damages, because the defendant did not damages, they must also award economic demonstrate highly or non-economic negligent or reckless compensation. behavior. Once all of the general guidelines are met, and the judge instructs the jury they may award punitive damages, the jury begins its three step test. STEP 1: THE EXTENT OF THE DAMAGING CONDUCT • In the first step, the jury deliberates the extent of the damaging conduct, and the degree of malice with which the defendant pursued the conduct. • The more unethical or blatantly harmful the behavior, the higher the award will be. • Juries may also take into account how much the defendant benefited from their poor conduct. • If it can be shown that the defendant made significant financial gains because of the behavior, the jury is likely to pursue the punitive damage cap. • On the other hand, the defense can arque that the misconduct brought little or no benefit to the defendant, an argument that undermines the plaintiffs claim of intent to cause harm. STEP 2: THE LEVEL OF HARM Next, the jury decides the level of harm suffered by the plaintiff. ● The judge will instruct the jury not to make an award that is unreasonable in • comparison to the injuries suffered by the plaintiff. In this stage, the jury can only focus on the damage caused directly to the plaintiff, • and not how the defendant's behavior affected people who are not part of the lawsuit. This limitation is especially important in product liability cases, or lawsuits that could become class action suits. STEP 3: THE LEVEL OF DAMAGES NEEDED TO BE A DETERRENT • Once all of the other conditions have been met, the jury can determine an award. • The purpose of punitive damages is to punish the defendant for bad behavior, so the award should be high enough to act as a deterrent for future similar behavior. Juries may take into account the defendant's personal wealth, business holdings, and other personal assets when making their decision. The current cap on punitive damages in Illinois limits what a personal injury lawyer can seek, but $300,000 is still a stiff penalty for most defendants. Punitive damages are the best way to ensure a person or business does not repeat the same pattern of misconduct over and over again. With the right approach during the trial, a personal injury lawyer in Chicago may be able to secure punitive damages for his or her client. COGAN & POWER.P.C. Office location: a Cogan & Power, P.C., Attorneys at Law 1 East Wacker Drive, Suite 510, Chicago, IL 60601 ATTORNEYS AT LAw Phone: 312.477.2500 O Website: http://www.coganpower.com/ Infographic by Market JD www.marketjd.com