SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for SB 378, 1st Eng.

    Amendment No.    

                            CHAMBER ACTION
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11  Senator Kurth moved the following amendment:

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13         Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 

14         On page 5, line 2, through page 6, line 11, delete

15  those lines

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17  and insert:  intentional misconduct or gross negligence and

18  that the award is not excessive in light of the facts and

19  circumstances which were presented to the trier of fact.

20         (c)  This subsection is not intended to prohibit an

21  appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.

22  768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of

23  punitive damages that is less than three times the amount of

24  compensatory damages.

25         (2)(a)  Except as provided in paragraph (b), punitive

26  damages shall not be awarded against a defendant in a civil

27  action if that defendant establishes, before trial, that

28  punitive damages have previously been awarded against the

29  defendant in any state or federal court in any action alleging

30  harm from the same act or single course of conduct for which

31  the claimant seeks compensatory damages. For purposes of a

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for SB 378, 1st Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1  civil action, the term "the same act or single course of

 2  conduct" includes acts resulting in the same manufacturing

 3  defects, acts resulting in the same defects in design, or

 4  failure to warn of the same hazards, with respect to similar

 5  units of a product.

 6         (b)  In subsequent civil actions involving the same act

 7  or single course of conduct for which punitive damages have

 8  already been awarded, if the court determines by clear and

 9  convincing evidence that the amount of prior punitive damages

10  awarded was insufficient to punish that defendant's behavior,

11  the court shall permit the jury to consider the issue of

12  awarding subsequent punitive damages. In permitting the issue

13  of awarding subsequent punitive damages, the court shall make

14  specific findings of fact in the record to support its

15  determination of the insufficiency of the prior punitive

16  damages awards. In its determination the court may consider

17  whether the defendant's act or course of conduct has ceased.

18  If a jury then subsequently awards punitive damages, the court

19  shall, in entering final judgment, reduce the subsequent

20  punitive damages award by the total amount of any prior

21  punitive damages awards rendered in any state or federal

22  court; provided the subsequent damages award shall be reduced

23  only if, prior to the jury making a determination of the

24  amount of any subsequent award, the jury is informed that the

25  amount of its award will be reduced and informed of the amount

26  of such reduction.

27         (3)  The claimant attorney's fees, if payable from the

28  judgment, are, to the extent that the fees are based on the

29  punitive damages, calculated based on the entire judgment for

30  punitive damages. This subsection does not limit the payment

31  of attorney's fees based upon an award of damages other than

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    4:42 PM   03/09/99                              s0378c1c-15j01




                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for SB 378, 1st Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1  punitive damages.

 2         (4)(2)  Except as provided in subsection (2), the jury

 3  may neither be instructed nor informed as to the provisions of

 4  this section.

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 7  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============

 8  And the title is amended as follows:

 9         On page 1, lines 19-27, delete those lines

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11  and insert:

12         with respect to intentional misconduct or gross

13         negligence; specifying the basis for

14         calculating attorney's fees on judgments for

15         punitive damages; providing for the effect of

16         certain previous punitive damages awards;

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