Southern Union Co. v. Irvin

What’s a court of appeals up to when it decides that it is better equipped to determine a defendant’s delinquency and to assess the appropriate penalty than the judge who heard the testimony and who has even experienced the defendant’s misconduct in her court? A federal court of appeals has a definite duty when it reviews an award of punitives. In a federal case, it must decide whether the damages are so excessive and so unexpected that they offend the principle of fairness enshrined in the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. See BMW of North America v. Gore, 517 U.S. 559, 574, 116…