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Article: Justices to Consider Limiting Punitive Damages; Supreme Court Responds to Business Concerns About Constitutionality of Huge Awards
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- December 6, 1988
- Author:
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The Supreme Court, responding to complaints by business groups
about an "explosion" in huge damage awards, said yesterday it would
decide whether punitive damage awards that far exceed actual damages
violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against "excessive fines."
The justices agreed to review a Vermont jury's award of $51,000
in compensatory damages and $6 million in punitive damages against a
Houston-based waste disposal company for trying to drive a competitor
out of business.
The high court, which has failed twice in recent terms to resolve
the issue, said it would determine whether the Eighth Amendment,
generally seen as a bar against extreme criminal sentences or fines,
also ...