Chet Hooper Comments on Recent U.S. Supreme Court Ruling in the Exxon Valdez Case

Holland & Knight Maritime Partner Chet Hooper has been quoted in several publications reporting on the Exxon Valdez ruling where the Supreme Court set the 1:1 ratio for punitive damages to compensatory damages. Chet, who with Jovi Tenev, Dennis Bryant, Harmony Loube and Lissa Schaupp, wrote a brief in favor of Exxon for the International Chamber of Shipping, and other clients, was quoted in Energy Law 360 stating, "I think [the decision] will temper the wild awards that we've had in this country in punitive damages. I know our courts are criticized by other nations for cowboy justice in punitive damages and I think the decision will do away with that to a large extent."