This September 23, 2010 district court opinion in Dixon-Rollins v. Experian Information (E.D. Pa.) illustrates why punitive damages awards and other sanctions are needed to deter repeated violations of law. In this instance, credit reporting company Trans Union repeatedly violated federal credit laws despite explicit rulings against it by the 3rd Circuit and district courts. Ultimately, the district court (Savage, J.) awarded punitive damages at a 9x ratio in order to provide the “strong medicine” apparently needed to cause Trans Union to follow the law instead of saving money by using cursory, automated procedures.
The next time someone complains about too many lawsuits, send them the link to the opinion.