When Georgia Courts Award Punitive Damages

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When the conduct behind an injury was more than careless, such as driving drunk or leaving the scene, the injured person may ask for punitive damages. Georgia courts award them only where clear and convincing evidence shows aggravated conduct, and only to punish, penalize, or deter the defendant rather than to compensate the injured person. The statute that governs them, OCGA 51-12-5.1, sets that standard, a two-step procedure at trial, and a limit on the amount that depends on the kind of case.

The Purpose and the Standard

“Punitive damages” are “synonymous with the terms ‘vindictive damages,’ ‘exemplary damages,’ and other descriptions of additional damages awarded because of aggravating circumstances in order to penalize, punish, or deter a defendant” (OCGA 51-12-5.1(a)). They “may be awarded only in such tort actions in which it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant’s actions showed willful misconduct, malice, fraud, wantonness, oppression, or that entire want of care which would raise the presumption of conscious indifference to consequences” (OCGA 51-12-5.1(b)). They “shall be awarded not as compensation to a plaintiff but solely to punish, penalize, or deter a defendant” (OCGA 51-12-5.1(c)).

The Procedure

“An award of punitive damages must be specifically prayed for in a complaint.” The trier of fact first decides “whether an award of punitive damages shall be made,” by a special finding on the verdict form; if it finds that punitive damages are to be awarded, “the trial shall immediately be recommenced in order to receive such evidence as is relevant to a decision regarding what amount of damages will be sufficient to deter, penalize, or punish the defendant in light of the circumstances of the case” (OCGA 51-12-5.1(d)).

The Amount

The limit depends on the kind of case (OCGA 51-12-5.1(e), (f), (g)):

Kind of case Limit on the amount Subsection
Cause of action arises from product liability No limitation; only one award per act or omission (e)
Not product liability, and the defendant acted with the specific intent to cause harm, or while impaired to the degree the statute describes No limitation, against an active tort-feasor only (f)
Any other tort action "a maximum of $250,000.00" (g)

The section “shall apply only to causes of action arising on or after April 14, 1997” (OCGA 51-12-5.1(h)).

For example, imagine a car crash case with no product liability claim, in which the trier of fact decides that punitive damages of $400,000 should be awarded and makes no finding of specific intent to cause harm or of impairment. The case falls under subsection (g), so the award is limited to $250,000.

Conduct That Supports an Award

Driving under the influence is one example in the appellate decisions. In Moore v. Thompson, 255 Ga. 236 (1985), the Supreme Court of Georgia treated driving under the influence so as to injure another as an aggravating circumstance that can authorize punitive damages to deter repetition, and the Court of Appeals relied on that rule in Cheevers v. Clark, 214 Ga. App. 866 (1994), in affirming a $60,000 punitive award. Leaving the scene can add to the case. In Langlois v. Wolford, 246 Ga. App. 209 (2000), the jury awarded $3,500 plus $300,000 in punitive damages, and the Court of Appeals affirmed, treating the driver’s departure from the collision without speaking to the other party as intentional, culpable conduct showing conscious indifference to the consequences.

Conduct That Falls Short

An ordinary traffic violation is not enough. In MasTec North America, Inc. v. Wilson, 325 Ga. App. 863 (2014), the Court of Appeals, quoting an earlier decision, wrote that punitive damages “are authorized when the accident results from a pattern or policy of dangerous driving, such as excessive speeding or driving while intoxicated, but not when a driver simply violates a rule of the road.” MasTec applied that standard within a decisional rule on claims against employers that the Supreme Court of Georgia later held the apportionment statute had abrogated (Quynn v. Hulsey, 310 Ga. 473 (2020)).

An employer’s liability for punitive damages also needs a basis of its own. In American Material Services, Inc. v. Giddens, 296 Ga. App. 643 (2009), a punitive award against an employer was reversed because “the only theory of recovery available to the jury was American’s vicarious liability for Chambers’ negligence.” In Western Industries, Inc. v. Poole, 280 Ga. App. 378 (2006), the Court of Appeals held that the employer should have received summary judgment on the negligent entrustment and punitive damages claims, while the negligent hiring and retention claim could go forward.

Frequently Asked Questions

In a product liability case, who receives the punitive award?
Seventy-five percent of the punitive award, less a proportionate part of the costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney’s fees, as the trial judge determines, is paid into the state treasury through the Office of the State Treasurer, and the state then has the rights of a judgment creditor (OCGA 51-12-5.1(e)(2)).

What level of impairment removes the limit?
The limit does not apply against an active tort-feasor who acted or failed to act while under the influence of alcohol, drugs other than lawfully prescribed drugs taken as prescribed, or an intentionally consumed glue, aerosol, or other toxic vapor to the degree that judgment is substantially impaired; those damages are not the liability of any defendant other than an active tort-feasor (OCGA 51-12-5.1(f)).

When a phased trial is demanded, when are punitive damages decided?
Where a party has elected a phased trial in an action for bodily injury or wrongful death, fault is decided first and compensatory damages second, and if compensatory damages are awarded, the trial may be recommenced for further proceedings, including the punitive damages proceedings under OCGA 51-12-5.1(d) (OCGA 51-12-15(a)).

Does Georgia’s limit apply to a crash in another state?
Not necessarily. In United Parcel Service of America, Inc. v. Whitlock, No. A22A1231 (Ga. Ct. App. Jan. 26, 2023), a case arising from a crash on an interstate in South Carolina, the Court of Appeals held that “[t]he trial court did not err in determining that South Carolina law applies to the plaintiffs’ punitive damages claims.”

  • OCGA 51-12-5.1(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h); OCGA 51-12-15(a)
  • Moore v. Thompson, 255 Ga. 236 (1985); Cheevers v. Clark, 214 Ga. App. 866 (1994); Langlois v. Wolford, 246 Ga. App. 209 (2000)
  • MasTec North America, Inc. v. Wilson, 325 Ga. App. 863 (2014); Quynn v. Hulsey, 310 Ga. 473 (2020)
  • American Material Services, Inc. v. Giddens, 296 Ga. App. 643 (2009); Western Industries, Inc. v. Poole, 280 Ga. App. 378 (2006)
  • United Parcel Service of America, Inc. v. Whitlock, No. A22A1231 (Ga. Ct. App. Jan. 26, 2023)

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about punitive damages under Georgia law. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Whether punitive damages are available depends on the defendant’s conduct, the evidence, and the specific facts. A person injured in Georgia should consult a licensed Georgia attorney promptly about the particular situation.

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