Deseret News | Reader comments: Man wins lawsuit against Salt Lake VA hospital

Reader comments
Man wins lawsuit against Salt Lake VA hospital

Utah Damages | 2:15 p.m. April 12, 2008

Anybody notice that damages were capped in Utah? The victim got 1/3 of what was awarded.

In other words, tort reform has already happened in Utah, yet our costs have not decreased.

Perfect example of why doctors should stop blaming lawyers for all of their problems.

Timj | 3:23 p.m. April 12, 2008

Amen to Utah Damages.

Tumbleweed | 5:10 p.m. April 12, 2008

The problem with caps on damages are that they penalize the most seriously injured. For example, if a person lost an arm because of someone's negligence, no one would seriously dispute that his pain and suffering would be worth at least Utah's damage cap of $430,000 (who would trade their arm for $430K?) But if a person lost all four limbs, surely worth at least 4 times as much (one could argue it would be 100 times worse), that person would still only be entitled to $430,000. That's the problem with damage caps; they penalize the most seriously injured and most needy victims of someone else's wrongful act.

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