COA Holds That Punitive Damages Can't Be Awarded When The Wrongdoer Has Died

On a day when a federal court has erased the conviction of Ken Lay because he died before he could appeal, in Harrell v. Bowen the COA held that punitive damages can't be awarded when the defendant has died (i.e., can't be awarded against an estate). The COA reasoned that G.S. 1D-1, which governs punitive damages, says that the purpose of punitives is to punish the defendant and to deter the defendant and others from committing similar wrongful acts, but it isn't possible to deter a deceased person from engaging in future conduct, and therefore a claim for punitives should die if the wrongdoer dies. The COA observed that a minority of States hold that an award of punitive damages is not barred when the wrongdoer has died; these courts have reasoned that, while the deceased can't be deterred, the citizenry at large nonetheless may be deterred. The COA said that this was a policy issue reserved for the General Assembly.