Is this really a punitive damages case? As reported by the Associated Press, a judge in Montana is deciding whether to impose punitive damages on a manufacturer of aluminum baseball bats. A jury has already found the defendant liable for failure to warn and awarded $850,000 in compensatory damages.

The plaintiffs’ son was struck and killed by a baseball while playing in a baseball game. The article does not explain what warnings the plaintiffs contend should have been given, or how those warnings would have prevented the tragic death of the plaintiffs’ son. Obviously I haven’t heard the evidence presented to the jury, but I am skeptical that there could be any proof of malice here.