The Supreme Court decides to revisit the issue of constitutional limits on punitive damages (UPDATED)
The Court will decide whether its earlier decision in State Farm v Campbell (i) mandates a reasonable ratio between compensatory and punitive damages when the defendants conduct was outrageous and (ii) prohibits the jury from considering the harm done to persons other than the plaintiff in making its award.
The Court will be reviewing the Utah Supreme Court's affirmance in Philip Morris USA v. Williams of a $79.5 million damage award against a tobacco company. The jury awarded the plaintiff $521,485.40 in compensatory damages. The Court's decision to grant review is discussed at the ScotusBlog, The Volokh Conspiracy and Point of Law Forum.
My guess--insurers will like what the Court says on these issues. But the WSJ Blog is less sanguine about how the new Justices will vote.