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Remedies Keyed to Tabb, 8th
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell
Citation:
538 U.S. 408 (2003)Facts
In 1981, Curtis Campbell caused an automobile accident in Utah that killed Todd Ospital and permanently disabled Robert Slusher. State Farm, Campbell’s insurer, declined settlement offers at the $50,000 policy limit and took the case to trial, assuring the Campbells their assets were safe. A jury found Campbell one hundred percent at fault and returned a judgment of $185,849. State Farm initially refused to cover the excess liability and would not post a supersedeas bond. The Campbells reached an agreement with the accident victims to pursue a bad-faith claim against State Farm in exchange for ninety percent of any recovery. At trial, the Campbells introduced extensive evidence of State Farm’s nationwide PP&R policy, which allegedly created a scheme to minimize claim payouts across the company. The jury awarded $2.6 million in compensatory damages and $145 million in punitive damages, which the trial court reduced but the Utah Supreme Court reinstated.
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