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Komornik v. Sparks8/26/1993
mages, and even where the legislature has established a maximum fine for specified conduct, punitive damages for that conduct can exceed the maximum legislatively established fine. For example, Maryland Code (1957, 1992 Repl. Vol.), Article 27, § 342(f)(2) provides for a maximum fine of $500 for theft under $300. If punitive damages were awarded for a theft under $300, they obviously need not be limited to the statutory maximum of $500. Double jeopardy protections do not apply to punitive damages. A defendant may be punished by multiple awards of punitive damages to several plaintiffs for the same act. Punitive damages are supposed to be imposed to punish the defendant's conduct, but since they go to the plaintiff, sympathy for the plaintiff will often influence the amount. Except in punitive damages cases, we would certainly not permit a system where a prosecutor gets some, or all, of the fines assessed by the court. We would say the prosecutor's motives should be to seek punishment and deterrence, not personal financial gain. In punitive damages cases the plaintiff is acting as the public's prosecutor, but the plaintiff's motive generally is personal financial gain. It should be obvious that punitive damages have few of the safeguards that are afforded when other punishments are imposed by law.
There are other criticisms about the way we assess punitive damages which I need not reiterate here. For such criticisms, see, e.g., D. Ellis, Fairness and Efficiency in the Law of punitive Damages, 56 S. Cal. L. Rev. 1 (1982); J. Ghiardi, The Case Against Punitive Damages, 8 Forum 411 (1972); J. Long, Punitive Damages: An Unsettled Doctrine, 25 Drake L. Rev. 870 (1976); J. Mallor & B. Roberts, Punitive Damages: Toward a Principled Approach, 31 Hastings L.J. 639 (1980); J. Sales & K. Cole, Punitive Damages: A Relic That Has Outlived Its Origin, 37 Vand. L. Rev. 1117, 1154 (1984) ("the amount of punitive damages awarded in recent years . . . has escalated to astronomical figures that boggle the mind").
There are numerous anecdotal accounts of punitive damages awards in the millions of dollars, as well as awards that have amounted to death sentences for corporations and been ruinous to individuals. There is a definite increase in the incidences of, and size of, punitive damages awards. 2 J. Ghiardi & J. Kircher, Punitive Damages: Law and Procedure § 21.01, at 2 (1985). A 1987 RAND Corporation study found a 2,400% increase in the number of punitive damages awards in Cook County, Illinois from 1960-64 to 1980-84, and over a 250% increase in San Francisco County for the same period. The study also found a 4,200% increase in the median punitive damages award in Cook County during that period, and a 270% increase in San Francisco County. Peterson, et al., Punitive Damages -- Empirical Findings, The Institute for Civil Justice (The RAND Corporation, 1987), cited in R. Blatt, et al., Punitive Damages: A State-By-State Guide to Law and Practice § 1.4, at 11-12 (1991). As we said in Zenobia,
"accompanying this increase in punitive damage claims, awards and amounts of awards, is renewed criticism of the concept of punitive damages in a tort system designed primarily to compensate injured parties for harm."
Zenobia, 325 Md. at 451, 601 A.2d at 648. For these reasons, the Court in Zenobia and in the instant case has imposed new restrictions on punitive damages.
Neither the instant case nor Zenobia involves intentional torts and neither expressly decides whether "actual malice" is required for punitive damages in intentional tort actions, or whether implied malice is still sufficient.
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