The liability litigation environment in the U.S. continues to be challenging, driven by increases in nuclear and thermonuclear verdicts, rising attorney representation rates and evolving litigation strategies.
Sedgwick’s new Liability Litigation Observation and Trends report from offers a view into these developments.
The most striking trend in liability litigation is the dramatic increase in both size and number of nuclear verdicts, defined as jury awards exceeding $10 million, and their more extreme counterparts, thermonuclear verdicts (those that exceed $100 million). A Marathon Strategies report recently found that:
- Nuclear verdi…