Opinion ID: 1779024
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Final analysis.

Text: We began our review in this case by considering the due-process guideposts set out by the United States Supreme Court in BMW I, and we concluded that those guideposts indicated that the punitive-damages award in this case was excessive. We continued our review by considering the Hammond /Green Oil factors. Of the six factors applicable to this case, three of them weighed against a finding that the punitive-damages award was excessive. We now return to a final consideration of the question of excessiveness of the punitive-damages award in light of BMW I. A punitive-damages award of $150,000 would reduce the ratio of punitive damages to compensatory damages from 46.77:1 to 35:1. Based on the level of reprehensibility of the misconduct evidenced in this case, coupled with the financial vulnerability of the plaintiffs and the litigation costs incurred, we conclude that a $150,000 punitive-damages award is sufficient to punish the defendants and to deter them from further misconduct similar to that evidenced in this case, without compromising their due-process rights.