Catherine M. Sharkey (New York University School of Law) has posted Who’s Afraid of Punitive Damages for Products Liability Cases? (Who’s Afraid of Punitive Damages?, Mohr Siebeck 2026) on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
Products liability cases constitute a new frontier for punitive damages to be awarded where a defendant’s recklessness has caused widespread harm in society. The recognition of punitive damages for reckless conduct in products cases signals a significant move away from the retributive punishment roots of punitive damages awards. The proliferation of punitive damages awards in products liability cases—especially those awarded against corporations for conduct causing widespread harms—bespeaks a turn towards non-retributive, societal deterrence rationales for punitive damages. The insurability of punitive damages is yet another marker of the non-retributive deterrence goal now served by punitive damages. Moreover, two statutory innovations—split-recovery schemes and the one-award rule—respond to the societal nature of punitive damages, particularly in products liability cases.
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