THE BILL ITSELF
SB 1506
Civil Litigation
Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1506 By Senator Yarborough 4-01475A-26 20261506__
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A bill to be entitled
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An act relating to civil litigation; amending s.
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768.74, F.S.; revising the criteria that the court
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must consider in determining whether an award of money
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damages is excessive or inadequate; making technical
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changes; providing applicability; reenacting ss.
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400.0238(1)(d), 429.298(1)(d), 768.73(1)(d), and
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768.735(2)(c), F.S., relating to punitive damages,
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respectively, to incorporate the amendment made to s.
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768.74, F.S., in references thereto; providing an
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effective date.
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Section 1. Section 768.74, Florida Statutes, is amended to
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read:
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768.74 Remittitur and additur.—
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(1) In any action to which this part applies in which
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wherein the trier of fact determines that liability exists on
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the part of the defendant and a verdict is rendered which awards
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money damages to the plaintiff, it shall be the responsibility
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of the court must , upon proper motion, to review the amount of
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the such award to determine whether the if such amount is
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excessive or inadequate in light of the facts and circumstances
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that which were presented to the trier of fact.
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(2) If the court finds that the amount awarded is excessive
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or inadequate, it must shall order a remittitur or additur , as
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the case may be .
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(3) It is the intent intention of the Legislature that
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awards of damages be closely scrutinized subject to close
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scrutiny by the courts and that all such awards be adequate and
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not excessive.
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(4) If the party adversely affected by such remittitur or
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additur does not agree, the court must shall order a new trial
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in the cause on the issue of damages only.
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(5) In determining whether an award is excessive or
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inadequate in light of the facts and circumstances presented to
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the trier of fact and in determining the amount, if any, that
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the such award exceeds a reasonable range of damages or is
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inadequate, the court shall consider the following criteria:
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(a) Whether the amount awarded is indicative of prejudice,
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passion, or corruption on the part of the trier of fact;
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(b) Whether it appears that the trier of fact ignored the
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evidence in reaching a verdict or misconceived the merits of the
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case relating to the amounts of damages recoverable;
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(c) Whether the trier of fact took improper elements of
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damages into account or arrived at the amount of damages by
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speculation and conjecture;
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(d) Whether the amount awarded bears a reasonable relation
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to the amount of damages proved and the injury suffered; and
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(e) Whether the amount awarded is supported by the evidence
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and is such that it could be adduced in a logical manner by
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reasonable persons ;
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(f) Whether there is a rational, nonarbitrary connection
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grounded in the evidence between the injuries suffered and the
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amount of an award of noneconomic damages; and
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(g) Whether the amount of an award of noneconomic damages
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resulted from references to objects or values that did not have
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a rational connection to the facts of the case .
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(6) It is the intent of the Legislature to vest the trial
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courts of this state with the discretionary authority to review
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the amounts of damages awarded by a trier of fact in light of a
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standard of excessiveness or inadequacy. The Legislature
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recognizes that the reasonable actions of a jury are a
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fundamental precept of American jurisprudence and that such
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actions should be disturbed or modified with caution and
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discretion. However, it is further recognized that a review by
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the courts in accordance with the standards set forth in this
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section provides an additional element of soundness and logic to
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our judicial system and is in the best interests of the citizens
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of this state.
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Section 2. This act applies to causes of action pending on
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or after July 1, 2026.
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Section 3. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
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made by this act to section 768.74, Florida Statutes, in a
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reference thereto, paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of section
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400.0238, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
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400.0238 Punitive damages; limitation.—
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(1)
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(d) This subsection is not intended to prohibit an
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appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.
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768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of punitive
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damages that is less than three times the amount of compensatory
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damages.
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Section 4. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
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made by this act to section 768.74, Florida Statutes, in a
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reference thereto, paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of section
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429.298, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
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429.298 Punitive damages; limitation.—
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(1)
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(d) This subsection is not intended to prohibit an
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appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.
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768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of punitive
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damages that is less than three times the amount of compensatory
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damages.
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Section 5. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
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made by this act to section 768.74, Florida Statutes, in a
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reference thereto, paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of section
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768.73, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
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768.73 Punitive damages; limitation.—
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(1)
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(d) This subsection is not intended to prohibit an
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appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.
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768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of punitive
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damages that is less than three times the amount of compensatory
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damages.
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Section 6. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
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made by this act to section 768.74, Florida Statutes, in a
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reference thereto, paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of section
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768.735, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
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768.735 Punitive damages; exceptions; limitation.—
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(2)
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(c) This subsection is not intended to prohibit an
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appropriate court from exercising its jurisdiction under s.
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768.74 in determining the reasonableness of an award of punitive
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damages which is less than three times the amount of
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compensatory damages.
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Section 7. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.