Kansas Declares Damage Caps Unconstitutional

On June 14, 2019, the Kansas Supreme Court issued a landmark decision that changes the landscape of personal injury and workers’ compensation third-party cases.

In Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd., 2019 WL 2479464 (Kan. 2019), the Court declared K.S.A. § 60-19a02 — a 1986 law which originally capped non-economic damages (e.g., pain and suffering and mental anguish) to $250,000 and actual damages (e.g., medical expenses and lost wages) to $1 million—unconstitutional.

Section 60-19a02 increased the non-economic damages cap over time to its current $350,000, and in 1988, the Kansas Supreme Court threw out a $1 million damage cap on actual damages in medical malpractice cases (which surprised nobody).

But last Friday’s decision erased 30+ years of Kansas tort reform in one fell swoop, leaving the prospect of unlimited damages for defendants going forward.