Ninth Circuit Substantially Reduces Punitive Award Against Walgreen

Things have been quiet in the world of punitive damages for the last few months, but two recent decisions substantially reducing punitive awards under the BMW/State Farm factors warrant mention. My colleague Miriam Nemetz will discuss one of them—Grant Thornton, LLP v. Yung—in a forthcoming post. In today's post, I will address the Ninth Circuit's decision in Mitri v. Walgreen Co.­—a case in which my colleague Michele Odorizzi and I represented the defendant.

The case involves the alleged wrongful termination of a pharmacist, Sami Mitri, who claimed to have been fired in retaliation for identifying improper billing practices. The jury found for Mitri, awarding him $88,000 in lost wages (Mitri found a new job as a pharmacist shortly after he was terminated) and nothing for his alleged emotional distress. However, the jury awarded Mitri $1,155,000 in punitive damages—approximately 13 times the compensatory award.