In it, he appealed to the Supreme Court to resolve punitive damages litigation arising from the devastating 1989 oil spill in Alaska caused when the Exxon Valdez ran aground.
The cost of litigation alone (leaving aside any potential damages) may cause significant damage to a startup, including reductions in staff, changes to its products or services, or even a collapse of the business itself.
The prospect of lengthy litigation is particularly precarious for the owners, since damages are triple if a trial determines owners violated antitrust laws.
Mr. Murdoch said in July the size of the settlement was derived from a judgment about the likely damages and costs if the company pursued litigation and lost.
Furthermore, American discrimination cases are heard by juries, which are allowed to award punitive damages, vastly increasing the rewards of successful litigation.
The long-awaited initiative on damages actions, designed to stimulate the European culture of antitrust litigation, is also forthcoming.
FORBES: EU Expected To Hit Hard On Antitrust Enforcement In 2013
Since Delaware law indemnifies company officers from paying most civil damages, they are rarely exposed to the direct cost of shareholder litigation anyway.
FORBES: Securities Class Actions Mostly Punish Shareholders, Study Finds
What this means is that whatever fines and damages BP et al ends up paying as a result of civil litigation, it could be on the hook for double that amount after a criminal trial.
Meanwhile, the NFLPA and most NFL member clubs are sitting on the sidelines, fingers crossed, hoping that they do not get dragged into litigation that could conclude with the NFL being ordered to pay tobacco-like damages to the plaintiffs.
In 1995 the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act substituted proportionate liability for joint and several liability as the standard for damages.
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