PUNITIVE DAMAGES—RATIO TO COMPENSATORY DAMAGES
Roby v. McKesson Corporation, (Supreme Court of California, November 30, 2009) 47 Cal. 4th 686, 219 P.3d 749, 101 Cal.Rptr.3d 773, 22 A.D. Cases 1041, 09 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 14,189, 2009 Daily Journal D.A.R. 16,712
A woman who alleged she was wrongfully discharged from her employment because of her medical condition and related disability, filed an action against her employer seeking damages for harassment and discrimination. Following a jury verdict in favor of the plaintiff which included over $3 million in compensatory damages and $15 million in punitive damages, the court of appeal reduced the award of compensatory damages to $1.4 million and the punitive award to $2 million.
The plaintiff petitioned for review in the California Supreme Court, asserting that the jury’s entire $15 million award fell within constitutional limits and should be reinstated. However, the Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court of appeal and reduced the award of compensatory damages to $1.9 million, concluding that due the relatively low degree of reprehensibility on the part of the employer, a one-to-one ratio between compensatory and punitive damages was the constitutional limit:
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