When you file a lawsuit, you’re probably looking to get some financial compensation based on your injuries. Indeed, many plaintiffs file cases because they simply cannot deal with the financial burden thrust upon them by the defendant’s conduct. But what happens when the defendant is more than just negligent? What if they had done something so egregious that simply putting you back where you were financially before you got hurt is not enough to see justice done? In those instances, you can seek punitive damages in your personal injury claim.
In Georgia, you can sue for punitive damages if you can prove the criteria needed to get them. To get punitive damages, you must prove that the defendant did something that rises beyond negligence. In some cases, it will make sense to sue for punitive damages, while in others, the defendant’s conduct simply does not meet the threshold required.
For a free case review from our Athens, GA personal injury lawyers, contact Rice Law at (470) 287-3070.
What Are Punitive Damages?
Most people are a little bit familiar with the concept of damages. Everyone’s heard phrases like “I’ll sue the pants off them” or “sue them for all their worth.” Sayings like this exist because defendants who have wronged plaintiffs are required to pay them financial compensation because of their bad conduct. The whole idea behind most damages is to “make the plaintiff whole” again, meaning to get them back to a similar spot to where they were before they got injured.
However, sometimes defendants do very bad things. So bad, in fact, that plaintiffs can now ask for more damages than just those that will get them back to square one. These damages are called punitive damages because they punish defendants for egregious conduct. Punitive damages are “special” in that our Georgia personal injury lawyers will have to prove a little more than just negligence in your claim.
How Do Punitive Damages Work in Georgia?
As previously stated, punitive damages differ from compensatory damages, meaning they ar different rules govern them.
Identifying Gross Negligence in Georgia
For a plaintiff to get punitive damages, the defendant’s acts must rise above simply proving negligence. For example, you may prove that a defendant in a car accident claim was negligent if they did not see the speed limit sign and were driving faster than they should have been when they hit you. However, that would probably not rise to a level sufficient to justify punitive damages.
However, suppose that the driver saw the speed limit sign and then decided to see if he could double that limit just before they hit you. In that case, the driver’s actions would likely rise above mere negligence to something like “entire want of care,” and you could seek punitive damages.
Proving Punitive Damages
In order to get punitive damages, you must show, through “clear and convincing” evidence, that the defendant’s conduct rises to the level of malice, willful misconduct, wantonness, fraud, oppression, or “entire want of care” when they caused your injuries.
Are There Caps for Punitive Damages in Georgia?
Many states place caps on certain types of damages in lawsuits. Depending on the circumstances, there may be a cap on the punitive damages you can get in a Georgia personal injury claim.
Personal Injury
In most Georgia personal injury claims, plaintiffs can get up to $250,000 in punitive damages. This would include cases that are not based on product liability and do not involve a defendant intentionally causing harm, such as car accidents, slip and falls, and medical malpractice.
Product Liability
There’s no limit on the punitive damages you can receive for cases involving product liability in Georgia. However, 75% of those damages go to the state treasury.
Intentional Harm
In personal injury cases where the defendant intentionally causes harm, there is also no cap on punitive damages in Georgia.
Examples of Conduct That May Warrant Punitive Damages in Georgia
Determining whether seeking punitive damages makes sense in your personal injury case can be tricky. Fortunately, our lawyers have put together some examples that may give you a better sense of the types of situations that warrant punitive damages. Of course, the only way to determine if seeking punitive damages is possible in your case is to discuss it with our attorneys.
Car Accidents
A common reason for punitive damages in car accident claims is angry drivers. If another driver feels that you slighted them and gets “road rage,” subsequently chasing down your vehicle and ramming into you, that would rise above negligence and warrant an award of punitive damages.
Drunk driving is exceptionally reckless, shows indifference to others’ safety, and may also warrant punitive damages.
Truck Accidents
Punitive damages do not arise solely from drivers’ actions. For example, suppose a trucking company tells a trucker to make a very long trip and drive for an excessive amount of time without rest or risk being fired. If that trucker then gets in a crash and hurts someone, the trucking company that pressured the driver to engage in dangerous behavior may be on the hook for punitive damages.
Product Liability Incidents
Defective products can be designed with extreme carelessness and potential malice. For example, suppose a company puts a product on the market with a known, well-researched, dangerous flaw. If that product then hurts someone, the designer may be liable for punitive damages.
Abuse
Long-term and institutional abuse may warrant punitive damages. Institutions routinely ignore reports of abuse, fail to do sufficient background checks on new hires at nursing homes, or have insufficient oversight to identify abuse.
Medical Malpractice
Punitive damages may be available in medical malpractice cases involving egregious misdiagnosis, surgical errors, and birth injuries. We have experience with various types of medical malpractice lawsuits and can tell you whether you might recover punitive damages if you go to trial.
FAQs About Suing for Punitive Damages in Georgia
What is “Clear and Convincing” Evidence?
Providing clear and convincing evidence means that the evidence shows a very high probability that what we allege of the defendant’s conduct is true. Such evidence often includes video footage and eyewitness firsthand accounts.
Are There Exceptions to the Cap on Punitive Damages in Georgia?
The cap on punitive damages does not apply when someone acts under the influence of drugs, alcohol, or another mind-altering substance in Georgia, such as in drunk driving accidents. It also doesn’t apply in a product liability case or if the defendant intentionally injured the plaintiff.
Do You Have to Request Punitive Damages to Get Them?
You must specifically ask for punitive damages when you file a lawsuit and ask for compensatory damages. If you don’t ask for punitive damages, you will not get them, even if the case goes to trial and the jury finds the defendant liable.
Do You Need a Lawyer to Get Punitive Damages?
Without a lawyer, plaintiffs might never know that they are eligible for punitive damages because of the defendant’s egregious misconduct, that they must specifically pray for punitive damages when filing a lawsuit, or that punitive damages are only available when cases go to trial and the court awards them.
Can You Get Punitive Damages if You Settle Your Case?
You cannot get punitive damages if you settle your case. No defendant would agree to pay punitive damages unless compelled to do so by the court.
Should You Settle if You Are Eligible for Punitive Damages?
Settling is ultimately your decision, but our personal injury lawyers can explain your chances of getting punitive damages if you go to trial so you can make the best-informed choice. If the defendant was grossly negligent, we may use the prospect of punitive damages from a jury award to convince them to increase the settlement.
Can You Get Punitive Damages if You Share Fault?
Punitive damages are awarded based on the defendant’s conduct, so you may get them if you are partially at fault and go to trial. Keep in mind that Georgia is a comparative fault state, so you must be less than 50% at fault to sue and get any damages. Being partially at fault reduces your compensatory damages as well, which is important for plaintiffs to know.
Contact Our Georgia Personal Injury Attorneys Today
Start getting help with your claim from Rice Law’s Atlanta, GA personal injury attorneys by calling (470) 287-3070.