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How often do juries award punitive damages in civil cases?

April 26, 2017award cases Civil Damages juries punitive

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How often do juries award punitive damages in civil cases?

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Punitive damages are awarded to about 4 percent of prevailing plaintiffs in civil cases. Juries in tort cases awarded punitive damages to about 2.5 percent of prevailing plaintiffs. This phenomenon occurred most frequently in intentional tort (23.5 percent) and slander/libel (21.4 percent) cases. Asbestos cases, which constitute one of the most common types of products-liability cases, produced only 3.8 percent punitive awards. This is a very small number, particularly with respect to the percentage of punitive-damage awards in other products-liability cases (16.1 percent). For more information please refer to Brian Ostrom et al.,Examining the Work of State Courts, 2001 ( Williamsburg, VA : National Center for State Courts, 2002), particularly Part 2, “The Role of Juries in State Courts,” at 96.