Recently, the Supreme Court determined that punitive damages do not always apply when ordering the payment of compensation for moral damage in cases of extra-contractual civil liability. It all comes down to the violated right and the degree of responsibility of the one who caused the damage. Punitive damages will only be added when the gravity of the conduct deserves a high degree of social reproach that justifies such a sanction.

The case studied consisted of a claim for moral damages that a person filed against a Notary Public and a notarial association for publishing a note that criticized his work in a Notary. Before the claim reached the Supreme Court, a Federal Court had only ordered the defendants to pay moral damages and determined that a sentence for punitive damages was not appropriate.

This determination was what motivated the plaintiff to file an appeal, where the Supreme Court determined that punitive damages do not proceed unfailingly and unrestrictedly in any tort liability case in which moral damages are claimed.

The Court established that punitive damages are an element of the right to just remuneration, which constitute an exemplary sanction with preventive purposes that aims to dissuade similar harmful behaviors in the future, for which they will be added when the behavior is extremely grave and deserves to increase the sentence.

Additionally, although it is true that punitive damages increase the amount of compensation in favor of the victim, its essential and primary purpose is not to compensate the victim, but to prevent future violations of rights, which makes it imperative that the valuation of punitive damages be fully justified in the gravity of the conduct and the particular elements of the case.

The Civil Litigation Team at OLIVARES will continue to monitor the criteria and judgments in terms of damages that the Courts have issued and will provide further guidance, as changes arise.

PARA MAYOR INFORMACIÓN SOBRE EL CONTENIDO DE ESTE NEWSLETTER, CONTACTAR A:

Abraham Díaz

Abraham Díaz

Socio

Abraham Díaz es Socio de OLIVARES donde codirige el equipo de litigio, además de ser codirector de las prácticas de Protección de Datos Personales y Nuevas Tecnologías. Posee un amplio conocimiento jurídico que abarca todas las áreas de la Propiedad Intelectual (PI), enfocándose en temas de derecho marcario, competencia desleal, litigio de propiedad intelectual, derecho de autor, secretos industriales, derechos de obtentor de variedades vegetales, nombres de dominio y protección de derechos de propiedad intelectual en el entorno digital.
Alejandro Luna Fandiño

Alejandro Luna Fandiño

Socio

Alejandro Luna se unió a OLIVARES en 1996 y se hizo Socio en 2005, ha sido un miembro esencial en las prácticas de litigio administrativo, regulatorio y de litigio de PI de la firma, es Codirector del Grupo de Ciencias de la Vida, al igual que Coordinador del Departamento de Litigio.
Armando Arenas

Armando Arenas

Socio

Armando Arenas se unió a la firma en junio del año 2000 y es Socio en OLIVARES desde enero de 2017. Ofrece servicios de consultoría relacionada con signos distintivos y patentes; publicidad de marcas y productos farmacéuticos; trámites regulatorios de la industria farmacéutica; y adquisiciones públicas. Participa en la estrategia relacionada con el litigio de marcas por actos de competencia desleal, imagen comercial (trade dress) y publicidad engañosa, ante el IMPI, TFJA, Tribunales Federales y Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación.

ASOCIADOS

O LLAMAR AL SIGUIENTE NÚMERO:

+52(55) 5322 3000
Go Back Top