Punitive Damages: The Lawyer’s Tool for Shaping Society

I have found that punitive damages are the one thing that truly holds large corporate defendants accountable. They are the difference maker between a company sweeping their egregious conduct under the rug and having to own up to it in front of the jury. Every plaintiff's lawyer handling serious cases needs to read this book to maximize their skill set for framing the case and proving punitive damages in trial. Because of Sean’s inspiration and insight, I now look closely for punitive damages in every one of my cases and look forward to proving them up more methodically using the principles he describes in great detail in this book.

Everything you need to know—and everything you didn’t even know you needed to know—about punitive damages in one place! Excellent insights, strategies, and real-world examples of how to master this important damages claim.

As a senior trial paralegal, I found the chapters related to deeper discovery and meticulous depositions very helpful and inspiring. While the book may be mainly for trial lawyers, I highly recommend it be shared with any paralegals who want to hone their discovery skills. Regardless of your role on the trial team, the chapter on rethinking inside the box will remind you why you chose this profession. I have known Sean since the days of youth swimming, and this book shares much of his life-long passion for making the world a better place. And by reading it, you will pick up many nuggets and hopefully have your passions inspired!

This book is a valuable tool for young trial lawyers representing injury victims, or any plaintiff’s trial lawyer who wishes to gain more insight on pursuing punitive damages. The author’s insight and the publisher’s layout walk you through every phase of the punitive damages process.

Thanks to the vast collection of wisdom, creativity, and actual experiences Sean lays out in this guide, I have had my eyes opened to the untapped potential of punitive damages in a wide variety of cases. The chapter on using punitive damages in 'Demands, Settlements, and Mediations' is worth the price of the book alone!

Finally, someone has put together a comprehensive guide addressing all aspects of punitive damages from a trial lawyer’s perspective. The author has spared nothing as he shares his insight learned from real cases and real trials. [It is] so handy to have separate chapters for each phase of trial and the pre-trial litigation process. I really appreciate how each chapter can be read separately and provides a full tutorial on how to address any given step in the process. This book is like having a personal mentor prepare you for each phase! I feel more motivated and confident about pursuing punitive damages, and I think most readers will gain the same benefit—I highly recommend giving it a read!

Finally, a clear, comprehensive guide for navigating punitive damages! Sean’s passion for curbing misbehavior is apparent throughout the book as he shares insights and nuggets he has gathered over many years. I remember Sean sharing tips with me several years ago outside the courtroom when I was battling through phase two in a large punitive damages case, and now Sean shares the same intel from his heart and soul in a handy book! This is a must-read for anyone handling punitive damages cases, and the discovery techniques will help maximize your compensatory damages too.

This book is a step-by-step guide for handling punitive damage cases. Any lawyer who has not tried a punitive damage case to verdict should read this book—even those who try punitive damage cases. This book is a great refresher and provides some new twists! Good read, specific examples, great addition to the Trial Guides library!

Finally! Over my four jury consulting decades, one of my pet peeves has been the reluctance of so many attorneys to seek punitive damages. ‘No, that won’t work in this case’ is the too-frequent refrain—when in fact it would work if the lawyer knew more about how. The money left on the table, the case-killing contrib verdicts that could have been winners, the wasted improvements to public safety—all victims of attorney reluctance to use our most powerful civil deterrent. Sickening. But now, finally and long overdue, Sean Simpson’s Punitive Damages lays out the nuts and bolts of successful punitive damages pursuits and why they are worth pursuing even when the defendant’s insurance won’t cover it. He takes us from the basics all the way through far more than what you think you know, so you’ll see how much more often it can be done than you think—and how to do it. Most valuable and inspiring is that he motivates you to do it. Give this book a read, give its methods a try; they will likely change, among other things, the trajectory of your career. My sole criticism: Mr. Simpson waited too damn long to give us this treasure of a guide and workbook.

Here is a well written book that gives you the tools to be a more creative trial lawyer and increase the value of your cases. Sean's talent, passion, and analytical skills, based on decades of trying cases, comes through clearly. His book is a gift to those who enter the courtroom arena. It will be required reading at our firm.

Sean’s book on punitive damages is a goldmine for all plaintiff lawyers. Lawyers with punitive damage cases will be exposed to new concepts, ideas, and approaches, with specific examples of evidence to look for, strategies to use, and arguments to make. For lawyers without punitive damage cases, you won’t be without them for long after you read this.