Florida Senate - 2013                                    SB 1184
       
       
       
       By Senator Richter
       
       
       
       
       23-01008-13                                           20131184__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to punitive damages; amending s.
    3         768.73, F.S.; providing that, in making its
    4         determination as to the appropriate limits of an award
    5         of punitive damages, the court is not subject to an
    6         implied presumption about the amount of punitive
    7         damages the court may award; providing an effective
    8         date.
    9  
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 768.73, Florida
   13  Statutes, is amended to read:
   14         768.73 Punitive damages; limitation.—
   15         (1)(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c), an
   16  award of punitive damages may not exceed the greater of:
   17         1. Three times the amount of compensatory damages awarded
   18  to each claimant entitled thereto, consistent with the remaining
   19  provisions of this section; or
   20         2. The sum of $500,000.
   21         (b) Where the fact finder determines that the wrongful
   22  conduct proven under this section was motivated solely by
   23  unreasonable financial gain and determines that the unreasonably
   24  dangerous nature of the conduct, together with the high
   25  likelihood of injury resulting from the conduct, was actually
   26  known by the managing agent, director, officer, or other person
   27  responsible for making policy decisions on behalf of the
   28  defendant, it may award an amount of punitive damages not to
   29  exceed the greater of:
   30         1. Four times the amount of compensatory damages awarded to
   31  each claimant entitled thereto, consistent with the remaining
   32  provisions of this section; or
   33         2. The sum of $2 million.
   34         (c) Where the fact finder determines that at the time of
   35  injury the defendant had a specific intent to harm the claimant
   36  and determines that the defendant’s conduct did in fact harm the
   37  claimant, there shall be no cap on punitive damages.
   38         (d) This subsection is not intended to prohibit an
   39  appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.
   40  768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of punitive
   41  damages that is less than three times the amount of compensatory
   42  damages. In making such determination, there is no implied
   43  presumption about the appropriate level of punitive damages to
   44  be drawn from the limits in this subsection.
   45         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.