15 USC § 6604 - Punitive damages limitations | Title 15 - Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

USCPrelim is a preliminary release and may be subject to further revision before it is released again as a final version.

Current through Pub. L. 113-99. (See Public Laws for the current Congress.)

(a) In general

In any Y2K action in which punitive damages are permitted by applicable law, the defendant shall not be liable for punitive damages unless the plaintiff proves by clear and convincing evidence that the applicable standard for awarding damages has been met.

(b) Caps on punitive damages

(1) In general

Subject to the evidentiary standard established by subsection (a) of this section, punitive damages permitted under applicable law against a defendant described in paragraph (2) in a Y2K action may not exceed the lesser of—

(A) three times the amount awarded for compensatory damages; or

(B) $250,000.

(2) Defendant described

A defendant described in this paragraph is a defendant—

(A) who—

(i) is sued in his or her capacity as an individual; and

(ii) whose net worth does not exceed $500,000; or

(B) that is an unincorporated business, a partnership, corporation, association, or organization, with fewer than 50 full-time employees.

(3) No cap if injury specifically intended

Paragraph (1) does not apply if the plaintiff establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with specific intent to injure the plaintiff.

(c) Government entities

Punitive damages in a Y2K action may not be awarded against a government entity.

(d) Institutions of higher education

(1) In general

Subject to paragraph (2), punitive damages in a Y2K action may not be awarded against an instituion ^[1] of higher education as defined in section 1001 (a) of title 20.

(2) Exception

Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an institution of higher education if the Y2K failure in the Y2K action occurred in a computer-based student financial aid system of that institution of higher education, and the institution—

(A) has passed Y2K data exchange testing with the Department of Education; or

(B) is not or was not in the process of performing data exchange testing with the Department of Education at the time the Department terminates such testing.

[1] So in original. Probably should be “institution”.

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(a) In general

In any Y2K action in which punitive damages are permitted by applicable law, the defendant shall not be liable for punitive damages unless the plaintiff proves by clear and convincing evidence that the applicable standard for awarding damages has been met.

(b) Caps on punitive damages

(1) In general

Subject to the evidentiary standard established by subsection (a) of this section, punitive damages permitted under applicable law against a defendant described in paragraph (2) in a Y2K action may not exceed the lesser of—

(A) three times the amount awarded for compensatory damages; or

(B) $250,000.

(2) Defendant described

A defendant described in this paragraph is a defendant—

(A) who—

(i) is sued in his or her capacity as an individual; and

(ii) whose net worth does not exceed $500,000; or

(B) that is an unincorporated business, a partnership, corporation, association, or organization, with fewer than 50 full-time employees.

(3) No cap if injury specifically intended

Paragraph (1) does not apply if the plaintiff establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with specific intent to injure the plaintiff.

(c) Government entities

Punitive damages in a Y2K action may not be awarded against a government entity.

(d) Institutions of higher education

(1) In general

Subject to paragraph (2), punitive damages in a Y2K action may not be awarded against an instituion ^[1] of higher education as defined in section 1001 (a) of title 20.

(2) Exception

Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an institution of higher education if the Y2K failure in the Y2K action occurred in a computer-based student financial aid system of that institution of higher education, and the institution—

(A) has passed Y2K data exchange testing with the Department of Education; or

(B) is not or was not in the process of performing data exchange testing with the Department of Education at the time the Department terminates such testing.

[1] So in original. Probably should be “institution”.

Source

(Pub. L. 106–37, § 5,July 20, 1999, 113 Stat. 192; Pub. L. 106–113, div. B, § 1000(a)(4) [title III, § 311], Nov. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 1535, 1501A–265.)

Amendments

1999—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 106–113added subsec. (d).

The table below lists the classification updates, since Jan. 3, 2012, for this section. Updates to a broader range of sections may be found at the update page for containing chapter, title, etc.

The most recent Classification Table update that we have noticed was Tuesday, May 21, 2013

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15 USC	Description of Change	Session Year	Public Law	Statutes at Large

15 USC § 6604 - Punitive damages limitations

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