The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans tossed out a $1 million punitive damage award to Norman and Genevieve Broussard, a Biloxi couple who successfully sued State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
U.S. District Judge L.T. Senter Jr. reduced the Broussards' jury award to $1 million after their January 2007 suit against the company, arguing that the company's policy of denying claims based on the infamous "wind-versus-water" protocol violated language in policyholders' contracts.
However, the 5th Circuit vacated the entire award, saying Senter should have barred the jury from considering punitive damage in the case and that the judge had no right to subvert the jury by fining the insurance company for more than $220,000 in wind damage to the Broussards' home.
The court, which is largely occupied by conservative judges appointed by Republican presidents, favored State Farm, arguing that the company had a good argument for denying the Broussards' claim.
Semi-retired attorney Alex Alston said he could not speak for the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, but feared that many courts were growing increasingly conservative and corporate-friendly.
"This seems to be an issue in more and more courts these days," Alston said.
The Mississippi Supreme Court, also dominated by the pro-business lobby, overturned one of Alston's cases, throwing out a Hinds County Circuit Court jury's decision last year and reversing a $36.4 million jury award against Prudential Insurance Company of America. The court also forced benefactors of the policyholder to pay Prudential's court costs.
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