Several years ago I was involved in a minor car accident where I rear ended another individual at low speeds (minor body damage, the police were not involved, everyone drove away fine). I am now being sued for punitive damages which are not covered by my insurance umbrella plan. To me this seems extreme for a minor accident. Will my insurance still settle? What does this mean for me personally? How common is this with car accidents?
My professor had this Erie hypothetical but didn't provide an answer... what do we think?
Congress has recently enacted a statute that says that in all cases in federal courts, punitive damages shall only be awarded if plaintiff has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant has intentionally harmed plaintiff.
State A has a general statute which states that punitive damages shall only be awarded if plaintiff has proved with a clear and convincing evidence that the defendant has intentionally harmed plaintiff.
In a diversity action in a federal court arising under a cause of action created by State A, which of the above laws should apply?
[TX]Last week two dogs brutally attacked and killed my cat on my own property. I have come to find out that the dogs responsible have attacked another dog when loose on the streets, so the dog's owner knows that the dogs are aggressive.
The dogs were picked up by Animal Services and picked up by the owner, animal services requires the person that picks up any animals to show ID.
Unfortunately for me because I had to watch it, the attack and death of the cat was captured on video by one of my security cameras and our neighbor witness the attack and is happy to testify. So, it seems ironclad who the owner is and that their dogs were responsible.
I have made an open records request for all information that Animal Services has on the dogs, including any dangerous dog reports, previous pickups, etc.
Which comes to my question, I know in Texas pets are considered property and that I can not claim pain and suffering/loss of companionship. I did have costs for cremation, I am pretty sure I have that as a minimum case against the owner of the dogs, but something that appears less clear, can I reasonably file a request punitive damages over the cremation costs as the owner knew the dogs were aggressive and had not properly secured them?
I agree with the idea of punitive damages, but they should be paid as a tax back to the government that can be used for a better cause, or maybe even to a charity. The plaintiff will already have been awarded compensation for the wrong done to them, and any extra punitive damage is solely to punish the offender for particularly egregious behavior.
