Legal Opinion
Vivian Mattison Morty Ronald Mattison v. Dallas Carrier Corporation
Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Decided November 21, 1991No. 91-3008PublishedCited by 109 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
OPINION
NIEMEYER, Circuit Judge:
Although punitive damages have been awarded in the United States in diverse circumstances for approximately two hundred years, only recently have they been awarded in such amount and with such frequency that the activity has awakened a constitutional conscience about them. In this case we hold that the South Carolina law for awarding punitive damages, applied by the district court whose jurisdiction was based on diversity of citizenship, denied the defendant due process in violation of the Fifth Amendment, because its lack of meaningful standards allowed the…
2Cases cited39 opinions
- Erie Railroad v. TompkinsSupreme Court of the United States · 1938
- Connally v. General Construction Co.Supreme Court of the United States · 1926
- Hanna v. PlumerSupreme Court of the United States · 1965
- Smith v. WadeSupreme Court of the United States · 1983
- United States v. BatchelderSupreme Court of the United States · 1979
34 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by109 opinions
- Lightning Lube, Inc. v. Witco Corp.Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit · 1993
- Price v. City of Charlotte, North CarolinaCourt of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit · 1996
- Odetics, Inc. v. Storage Technology Corporation, Visa International Service Association, Inc., Visa Usa, Inc. And Crestar Bank, Inc., Defendants-CrossCourt of Appeals for the Federal Circuit · 1999
- Garnes v. Fleming Landfill, Inc.West Virginia Supreme Court · 1991
- Joe Morgan v. Bill Woessner, and Clay Searle Los Angeles City, (Two Cases)Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · 1993
104 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.