"There is no question the compensatory and punitive-damages verdicts were a message," said Joseph Freudenberg , a partner at Dilworth Paxson LLP and former senior counsel at Sunoco Inc. ❋ Russell Gold (2011)
Separately, Altria said the Oregon Supreme Court on Friday overturned a lower court's ruling in a smoking-and-health case and required the company to pay the state 60% of a $79.5 million punitive-damages award, plus interest. ❋ John Kell (2011)
"So what can a corporation do to protect itself against punitive-damages awards such as this?" ❋ Unknown (2008)
Democrats also point to other high-court decisions favoring business, including a 2009 ruling making it tougher to sue for age discrimination; a 2008 decision that threw out the $2.5 billion punitive-damages award stemming from the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska; and a 2007 opinion that, discarding a century-old antitrust rule, allowed manufacturers to block retailers from discounting prices. ❋ Unknown (2010)
Supreme Court to overturn a $79.5 million punitive-damages ruling over an Oregon smoker's death. ❋ Unknown (2009)
Altria Group Inc. 's Philip Morris unit lost a final chance Tuesday in the Supreme Court to overturn a $79.5 million punitive-damages ruling over an Oregon smoker's death. ❋ Unknown (2009)
The court also ruled the Constitution's equal protection clause doesn't enable individual public employees to sue for workplace discrimination, and said it will again hear a $79.5 million punitive-damages award against Philip Morris that Oregon courts have repeatedly upheld. ❋ Unknown (2008)
Separately, the justices agreed, for the third time, to review a $79.5 million punitive-damages award against Altria Group Inc. 's Philip Morris USA unit. ❋ Unknown (2008)
The Supreme Court slashed a punitive-damages award against Exxon Mobil in the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, suggesting punitive damages shouldn't exceed actual damages. ❋ Unknown (2008)
Writing for the majority, Justice David Souter said the $2.5 billion punitive-damages award set by the appellate court shouldn't have exceeded the actual damages of $507.5 million. ❋ Unknown (2008)
Last year, the Supreme Court sent the Exxon Mobil case back to lower court for review in light of the February 2007 punitive-damages ruling, Philip Morris v. Williams, that placed new legal restrictions on punitive damages. ❋ Unknown (2008)
A Louisiana state appeals court in August 2007 left the punitive-damages award intact. ❋ Unknown (2008)
The justices also, without comment, rejected an Exxon Mobil Corp. bid to overturn a $112 million punitive-damages award against it over radioactive contamination at a Harvey, La., industrial property. ❋ Unknown (2008)
Although the lawsuit turns on the narrow field of federal maritime law, the appeal presents the chance for the oil giant to reduce or overturn the award and for the justices to put a finer point on how courts reach financial figures in punitive-damages cases. ❋ Unknown (2007)
Separately, Andelman said he remained optimistic that the tobacco industry will prevail in the class action lawsuit brought by smoker Howard Engle against Altria's Philip Morris USA and other cigarette makers in 1994 on behalf of smokers nationwide, which ended with an unprecedented $145 billion punitive-damages award. ❋ Unknown (2006)
One potential outcome in the Tenenbaum case is that a court will decide to rely on the model of punitive-damages style evaluation, giving judges greater discretion to reduce statutory damage awards in copyright cases. ❋ Unknown (2011)
