'A Lot of Mush': Pa. Justices Wary of Hazy Case Law on Punitive Damages Limits
Justice David Wecht said the case law was rife with "wiggle words." The case highlighted new Chief Justice Debra Todd's first day presiding over oral arguments.
October 25, 2022 at 06:20 PM
3 minute read
In her first oral argument session as leader of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Chief Justice Debra Todd kept her own questioning limited as her colleagues scrutinized an appellant's arguments for reining in large punitive damages awards.
Several justices were critical of case law cited by the defendants' lawyer, Scott Cessar of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, in support of limiting punitive-to-damages ratios to 1:1 in instances where compensatory damages were substantial.
The defendants' argument Tuesday hinged on U.S. Supreme Court rulings addressing limits to punitive damages, but the justices questioned the extent to which the Pennsylvania high court was bound to that precedent.
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