Did Trial Court Apply Correct Criteria In Reviewing Jury’s Award of Punitive Damages?
Andrea Barnes, Executrix of the Estate of Natalie Barnes, et al. v. University Hospitals of Cleveland et al., Case no. 2007-0140 8th District Court of Appeals (Cuyahoga County) ISSUES: • In determining whether a jury’s award of punitive damages in a civil lawsuit is excessive, is a trial court required to explicitly apply the three criteria set forth in the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1996 decision in BMW of North America v. Gore and to affirm the proportionality of the jury’s award according to those criteria? • Under the statutory guidelines for the appointment of private judges in Ohio, is a retired judge eligible to serve as a private judge if he or she was never elected to judicial office, but retired while serving on the bench under a gubernatorial appointment? BACKGROUND: This case involves a civil lawsuit filed against University Hospitals of Cleveland and MedLink, a provider of home health care services, by surviving family members of a mentally handicapped and epileptic patient, Nat
