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8 J. Ins. Regul. 4 (1989-1990)

handle is hein.journals/jloins8 and id is 1 raw text is: Punitive Damages: Mutiny Over the Bounty$ Phillip K Stano* ABSTRACT For the past few terms, the United States Supreme Court has seemed poised to deal with constitutional issues relating to punitive damages. In this ar- ticle, the author analyzes the latest ruling, recounts the chilling burden that the award of such damages place on life insurers and others, cautions that affected business groups have sometimes failed to preserve their right to assert their constitutional arguments, and spells out specifically how those affected should continue to pursue their constitutional and legislative rem- edies. INTRODUCTION We will draft for you a grave complaint, alleging fault is theirs and yours it ain't. And for your damage anatomical demanding a sum that's astronomical. For that, indeed, is our high calling, to get you a fortune for your falling! Although written as trade humor,' the above verse reflects a pervasive attitude of American society which demands designer jury awards for what is oftentimes nothing more than an off-the-rack injury. Debate surrounding the unpredictable and unlimited nature of punitive damage awards has occupied the editorial pages of the country's newspapers and the halls of state legislatures for the past several years. This debate con- tinues unabated with no end in sight. t Special thanks to Legislative Associates Patricia A. Parachini and J. Bruce Fer- guson for their help in the preparation of this paper. * Member of the bars of Alabama, the District of Columbia, and the United States Supreme Court. He is Senior Counsel with the American Council of Life Insurance (ACLI) and is chiefly responsible for the ACLI's litigation efforts. He has filed several briefs that address the constitutionality of punitive damages, particularly as the issue affects life in- surers. 1. Excerpt from a poem discussing suing over an ice-skating accident titled Happy Holidays by New York plaintiffs' lawyers Abraham and Seymour Fuchsberg, Wall St. J., Sept. 13, 1988, at BI.