Wrongful Death Punitive Damages

Answer:

One of the questions that we’re asked regularly in wrongful death actions if whether or not punitive damages can be recoverable in a wrongful death case. The short answer is yes but the threshold for recovery of those types of damages is very high. That threshold is the same for all cases, whether it’s wrongful death or you bringing your own injury claim. It’s a high threshold. It’s not just negligence that will allow you to recover punitive damages because if a third party or a defendant or an at fault party is negligent, in other words, they owed duty to the injured party, the breached that duty, and the breach of that duty causes damages. Those are the elements of negligence. When you’re talking about punitive damages, those are punishment damages. In negligence actions, we don’t punish people. That’s the criminal system and it requires intent. In order to get punitive damages in a wrongful death case or any personal injury case in the state of Florida, you must prove willful behavior, almost purposeful, but something so egregious that it’s equivalent to second degree murder.