If someone else’s actions caused your injuries, you deserve compensation for the damages you’ve suffered. While the legal system can’t undo the harm done or erase your pain, it can hold the responsible party accountable for their actions.
In this article, our Dallas personal injury lawyers explain punitive damages and how they can play a role in your case.
What Are Damages in a Dallas Personal Injury Case?
Damages is the term used to describe the harm and losses an injured victim incurs because of another party’s intentional torts, negligence, and wrongdoing. Texas personal injury laws provide compensatory damages and punitive damages.
Compensatory damages include:
- Economic Damages: These are the financial losses from the accident and your injuries, including loss of income, medical costs, and out-of-pocket expenses.
- Non-Economic Damages: These damages compensate victims for their pain and suffering. Examples include emotional distress, diminished quality of life, impairments, and disfigurement.
Punitive damages are a separate category of damages that may be awarded in a personal injury lawsuit. However, the plaintiff (i.e., the injured party) must prove specific elements to receive punitive damages.
What Are Punitive Damages in a Personal Injury Case?
Punitive damages or exemplary damages are a special class of damages awarded to “punish” egregious conduct. Juries award punitive damages to deter defendants (i.e., the at-fault parties) from repeating their poor behavior. The damages also warn other parties of what could happen if they engage in the same conduct.
When Can Punitive Damages Be Awarded in Texas Personal Injury Cases?
Texas Civil and Remedies Code § 41.003 explains when juries may award punitive damages. The jurors must determine that the defendant acted with fraud, gross negligence, or malice in causing the plaintiff’s injuries. The code defines this behavior as:
- Malice: a defendant’s intent to cause the plaintiff substantial injury or harm
- Gross Negligence: conduct that the defendant knew involved an extreme degree of risk of harm to others but continued with the conduct with a conscious indifference to the safety, rights, and welfare of others
- Fraud: any fraud other than constructive fraud
The type of fraud the code defines for punitive damages is any criminal deception or wrongful acts that lead to personal or financial gain by the defendant.
Malice often refers to intentional torts, such as murder, kidnapping, and assault. These acts can also result in criminal charges. However, a party doesn’t need to be arrested or convicted of a criminal offense for the victim to seek punitive damages in a civil case.
Gross negligence is behavior that exceeds ordinary negligence. It is often described as a wanton and willful lack of concern for the safety of other people. Even though the defendant knew their actions could likely result in harm to someone else, they knowingly proceeded.
Punitive Damages Require a Higher Level of Proof Than Compensatory Damages
The law requires the plaintiff to prove the elements of a personal injury claim for compensatory damages by a preponderance of the evidence. The jury must believe there is a greater chance than not that the defendant is liable for the plaintiff’s damages.
The elements required to prove liability for compensatory damages include:
- The defendant owed the plaintiff a legal duty to use reasonable care to avoid causing the plaintiff harm.
- The defendant’s conduct breached the duty of care owed to the plaintiff.
- The breach of duty is a direct and proximate cause of the accident or incident that harmed the plaintiff.
- The plaintiff sustained injuries and incurred damages because of the breach of duty.
The burden of proof for punitive damages is higher. The plaintiff must prove the elements required for punitive damages by clear and convincing evidence. The jury must believe that the defendant knew their actions created an extreme risk of harm yet willfully continued with those actions despite the danger.
Are Punitive Damages Unconstitutional?
Juries are not told what amount they can award for punitive damages. Texas law provides factors for jurors to consider when deciding how much to award for punitive damages. The factors include:
- The nature of the defendant’s conduct
- The degree of fault of the defendant
- The character of the defendant’s conduct
- The defendant’s net worth
- The extent to which the defendant’s conduct offends justice and the public’s sense of decency
- The situation and sensibilities of the parties involved
Texas courts consider several factors when determining if an award for punitive damages is lawful, including:
- The nature of the defendant’s conduct, including the reprehensibility of the defendant’s conduct;
- The difference between the potential or actual harm caused by the defendant and the amount of the punitive damages award; AND,
- The amount of punitive damages awarded compared to the civil penalties in comparable cases.
Defendants can appeal an award for punitive damages based on the legality of the award itself or the constitutionality of the amount. Punitive damages can add a substantial amount to a personal injury award.
Texas Caps Punitive Damages in Personal Injury Claims
Texas law caps the maximum amount for awards of punitive damages. Regardless of what the jury awards, punitive damages cannot exceed the greater of:
- An amount of $200,000; OR,
- An amount equal to two times the economic damages plus the amount of non-economic damages not to exceed $750,000.
Some cases may be exempt from the caps. An experienced personal injury lawyer can explain punitive damages for your case during a free consultation.
Is There a Deadline for Filing a Punitive Damages Claim in Texas?
Punitive damages are not a separate cause of action. You must ask for punitive damages as part of your personal injury lawsuit. Therefore, the statute of limitations for punitive damages is the same as the deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit.
Most personal injury lawsuits in Texas have a two-year statute of limitations. Exceptions could shorten or lengthen the deadline. Filing a lawsuit after the statute of limitations expires can result in a dismissal. Hence, it is a good idea to talk with a lawyer as soon as possible after your injury or accident.
Learn More During a Free Consultation With Our Dallas Personal Injury Lawyers
Our attorneys at Benton Accident & Injury Lawyers carefully analyze all factors in your case to determine the damages in your case. We will fight to obtain the best possible settlement or verdict for your case. Call us to schedule a free consultation with our Dallas personal injury lawyers.
For more information call Benton Accident & Injury Lawyers at (214) 556-8321 or schedule your free consultation!