Products Liability Series: When Are Punitive Damages Awarded?
When are punitive damages awarded? Under Arkansas law, a statute affixes the standard for awarding punitive damages, and the key element is a showing of express or implied malice.[1] Under this rule, punitive damages are appropriate only when the evidence shows something beyond negligence and gross…
Products Liability Series: Can a Plaintiff Pursue Punitive Damages From Multiple Defendants?
Can a plaintiff pursue punitive damages from multiple defendants? Yes, but this comes with significant limitations for the plaintiff. Pursuing relief from multiple defendants generally results in the conclusion that joint tortfeasors may be held jointly and severally liable.[1] However, when…
Products Liability Series: Does Arkansas Recognize Market Share Liability as a Theory of Liability?
No. Arkansas has not adopted alternative or market share liability, but has retained the traditional requirement of proximate cause in all tort cases. See Woodward v. Blythe, 249 Ark. 793, 462 S.W.2d 205 (1971). To prove a products liability case in Arkansas, a plaintiff must show that a product…
Products Liability Series: Can an Expert Witness Merely Reiterate Others' Opinions?
No. An expert cannot merely reiterate, vouch for, or bolster the opinions of someone else, as this is improper and inadmissible. Ark. R. Evid. 702; Food, Inc. v. Indus. Risk Insurers, No. 5:13-CV-05204, 2015 WL 12914256, at *2 (W.D. Ark. Oct. 6, 2015) (holding that expert could not offer opinions…
Products Liability Series: Does Arkansas Law Recognize a Claim for Medical Monitoring?
No. Medical monitoring may possibly be treated as a type of damages, but is not a separate cause of action in Arkansas. The Rule. Although the case law on this topic is scant in Arkansas, in one case the Arkansas Supreme Court acknowledged that there is no standalone claim for medical monitoring…