Mark W. Napier Personal Injury Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Changes in OH Accident Litigation

The accident litigation rights of Ohio citizens changed considerably in April of 2005 when the new tort reform laws went into effect. The laws enacted significant changes that affect the circumstances under which a person is able to sue and how much they may recover from a personal injury lawsuit. The main provisions of the tort reform bill (Senate Bill 80) can be summarized as follows. 

Punitive damages for non-catastrophic injuries are limited and contingent upon the size of a defendant company.  Specifically, for companies employing 500 people or more, the limit is twice the amount of the compensatory damage; and for smaller companies punitive damages are limited to the lesser of twice the compensatory damages, 10% of the plaintiff’s net worth, or $350,000. Other provisions address the defendant’s right to a bifurcated trial, meaning that the defendant is entitled to have the amount of punitive damages decided in a separate trial. The jury must receive instructions as to the tax ramifications of damage awards and they cannot consider the wealth of the defendant in deciding the value of an award.  There is no limit to the value of punitive damages for catastrophic injuries.

Another provision of Ohio tort reform is that the statues of repost for construction and product claims are limited to ten years.  This means that you must file a claim within ten years of when a manufacturer first sold a product for a product liability claim and within ten years of completion for a construction claim.  Exceptions exist that relate to the type of product warranty and to fraud on the part of the manufacturer.  Bill 80 also changes the status of the consumer expectation test from a stand alone measure to part of the standard for determining design defects and considers the existence of safer design alternatives among the issues in an award decision.

Ohio tort reform laws also limit successor liability in asbestos related claims.  This provision provides protection to companies that never were involved in the manufacture of asbestos but who have acquired a company that had in the past.  The protection varies with the date of the acquisition and the value of the company that was purchased.
 
People who own or rent property that is adjacent to recreational trails or provides direct access to public property where produce is grown have limited immunity against accident liability cases under Bill 80.

The reform law provides immunity for food manufacturers and suppliers and trade associations from civil litigation suits for claims relating to a person’s weight gain or weight related health conditions as a result of over consumption of food and food products.

A defendant in a civil litigation suit may introduce evidence regarding the non-use of safety belts as a contributing factor to an accident and may affect the value of the non-economic damages that are awarded.

Article provided by accident lawyers in Cincinnati , Freking & Betz, LLC, 513-721-1975, www.frekingandbetz.com.

Freking & Betz, LLC - Cincinnati accident law
525 Vine Street, Suite 600
Cincinnati, Ohio (OH) 45202
Phone: 513-721-1975