On July 19, 2023, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania declined to cap punitive-damages awards. This was a setback for WLF, which filed an amicus brief supporting the defendants. In deepening a split, the court held that the punitive-damages ratio relevant to the Fourteenth Amendment is calculated per defendant rather than per judgment. WLF’s brief explained why the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause limits punitive damages to the amount of compensatory damages when the compensatory-damages award is substantial. The brief also explained why the ratio cannot go above 1:1 based on potential harm.
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