No. SB 1506
Filed under Legal.
Civil Litigation; Revising the criteria that the court must consider in determining whether an award of money damages is excessive or inadequate, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDWhen a jury awards money damages in any civil case, judges already must decide whether that amount is excessive or inadequate and can order a new trial on damages if it is.
This bill adds two new factors judges must weigh specifically for noneconomic-damages awards, such as pain and suffering: whether the amount has a rational, evidence-based link to the injury.
And whether the award instead came from comparing the injury to unrelated objects or values with no rational connection to the facts of the case, a tactic sometimes used to argue for a bigger number.
The new criteria apply to lawsuits already pending on July 1, 2026, not just cases filed after that date, so they can affect damages awards in cases already underway.
AICourts must now consider whether a noneconomic-damages award has a rational, nonarbitrary connection, grounded in the evidence, to the injuries the plaintiff actually suffered when deciding if the award is excessive.
AICourts must also consider whether a noneconomic-damages award resulted from referencing objects or values that have no rational connection to the facts of the case, a factor aimed at anchoring-style jury arguments.
AIThe new remittitur and additur criteria apply to any cause of action pending on or after July 1, 2026, reaching lawsuits already filed and underway, not just cases filed after that date.