S 1546 · 108th Congress 2003–2005, ended

Small Business Liability Reform Act of 2003

Introduced Jul 31, 2003 Originated Senate Sponsor Mitch McConnell R-KY

Fact sheet

Latest action · Jul 31, 2003 Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR 8/1/2003 S10676-10679)

Progress

Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.

IntroducedJul 31, 2003
Passed SenateNot reached
Passed HouseNot reached
To the PresidentNot reached
Became lawNot reached

Summary

Small Business Liability Reform Act of 2003 - Allows punitive damages to be awarded against a small business only if the claimant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that conduct carried out by the defendant with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of others was the proximate cause of the harm that is the subject of the action. Limits such punitive damages to the lesser of three times the amount awarded for economic and noneconomic losses, or $250,000. Makes such limitation inapplicable if the court finds that the defendant acted with specific intent to cause the type of harm for which the action is brought. Provides liability limitation exceptions.

States that in any civil action against a small business: (1) each defendant shall be liable only for the amount of noneconomic loss allocated to that defendant in direct proportion to the percentage of responsibility of that defendant for the harm caused to the plaintiff; and (2) the court shall render a separate judgment against each defendant describing such percentage of responsibility.

Excepts from such liability limitations specified misconduct of a defendant.

Mandates that, in any product liability action covered by this Act, a product seller other than a manufacturer shall be liable to a claimant only if such claimant establishes that: (1) the product that caused the harm was sold, rented, or leased by the seller, the seller failed to exercise reasonable care with respect to the product, and such failure was the proximate cause of harm to the plaintiff; (2) the seller made an express warranty applicable to such product, the product failed to conform to the warranty, and such failure caused the harm to the plaintiff; or (3) the product seller engaged in intentional wrongdoing, and such wrongdoing caused the harm to the plaintiff.

Cosponsors 1

Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Jul 31, 2003.

Seat	Cosponsor		Signed on
D-CT	Joseph I. Lieberman	Original	Jul 31, 2003

Actions 3

Everything that happened, newest first.

Jul 31, 2003Introduced in Senate
Jul 31, 2003Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR 8/1/2003 S10676-10679)
Jul 31, 2003Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S10674-10676)

Related bills 1

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

Bill	Title	Relationship	Latest action
HR 2813	Small Business Liability Reform Act of 2003	Related bill	Aug 8, 2003

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Law.

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Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.