Juries and Unpredictability in Products Liability Damage Awards

The size and variability of jury damage awards in tort cases has been a contentious issue for over a decade. Nevertheless, there has been little empirical work addressing the relationship between the size of jury awards to products liability victims and their compensable losses. This paper examines this relationship using a sample of California cases. A compensatory model of damages based on plaintiff, injury, and case characteristics explains a large proportion of the variance in damage awards suggesting that juries rely heavily on monetary and non‐monetary loss estimates in determining damages. The evidence argues against charges of unpredictability, and indicates undercompensation on average

Actuarial science · Business · Damages · Economics · Jury · Liability · Personal injury · Plaintiff · Political science · Sample (material · Tort · Variance (accounting · Jury Decision Making Processes · Law · Law, Economics, and Judicial Systems · Medical Malpractice and Liability Issues · Accounting