United Insurance Co. of America v. Murphy

W.H. “Dub” Arnold, Chief Justice.

This is a defamation case. The appellants, United Insurance Company of America and Mark Burcham, appeal a judgment of the Crittenden County Circuit Court imposing an award of $600,000 in compensatory damages and $2,000,000 in punitive damages to appellee Ann Murphy for her slander claim. On appeal, the appellants contend that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that damages could be presumed and that they had the burden of proving that the alleged defamatory statements were true. They further maintain that the damage award is excessive and that the…