Assembly Bill 459
Awards of punitive damages
Topics: Damage (personal injury)
Stopped in committee
It never got a , so it never came up for a vote. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.
-
Introduced, passed
Jan 4, 2012
-
Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
-
Assembly vote, not reached
-
Senate vote, not reached
-
Governor, not reached
-
Law, not reached
Latest entry in the official record, Mar 23, 2012: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Assembly Committee on Judiciary and Ethics. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.
Following saves it on this device. New actions show on your Following page. You can also get updates in a feed reader.
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
Under current law, a person injured by a negligent person can recover the damages resulting from the injury. Damages include economic damages, such as the injured person's medical costs, and noneconomic damages, such as compensation or pain and suffering. In addition, under current law, the plaintiff may recover punitive damages if he or she can prove that the defendant acted maliciously toward the plaintiff or in an intentional disregard of the rights of the plaintiff. Current law limits the amount of punitive damages that may be awarded to twice the amount of any compensatory damages recovered by the plaintiff or $200,000, whichever is greater. The limitation on damages does not apply if the conduct of the defendant included the operation of a vehicle, including a motor vehicle, a snowmobile, an all-terrain vehicle, and a boat, while under the influence of an intoxicant to a degree that rendered the defendant incapable of safe operation of the vehicle.
The bill eliminates the limitation on the amount of punitive damages that may be awarded to a plaintiff.
Who's behind it
11 lawmakers are its . All 11 are Democrats.
3 more lawmakers .
See all 14 names Hide the names
Authors (11)
- Terese Berceau · Democrat, Assembly
- Janet Bewley · Democrat, Senate
- Chris Taylor · Democrat, Assembly
- Fred Clark · Democrat, Assembly
- Tamara Grigsby · Democrat, Assembly
- Gary Hebl · Democrat, Assembly
- Sandy Pasch · Democrat, Assembly
- Mark Pocan · Democrat, Assembly
- Jon Richards · Democrat, Assembly
- Kelda Roys · Democrat, Senate
- Christine Sinicki · Democrat, Assembly
Signed on in support (3)
- Chris Larson · Democrat, Senate
- Fred A. Risser · Democrat, Senate
- Lena Taylor · Democrat, Senate
What happened
-
Mar 23, 2012
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
-
Jan 4, 2012
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Judiciary and Ethics.
-
Jan 4, 2012
Introduced in the Assembly.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Jan 4, 2012 · Assembly
Introduced by Representatives Richards, Roys, Berceau, Bewley, Clark, Grigsby, Hebl, Pasch, Pocan, Sinicki and C. Taylor;Cosponsored by Senators Taylor, C. Larson and Risser
- Jan 4, 2012 · Assembly
Read first time and referred to committee on Judiciary and Ethics
- Mar 23, 2012 · Assembly
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
From the Wisconsin Legislature's official record, checked Sep 15, 2026. See the source
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor