I have awarded punitive damages, and my awards have stood up. 
 
Much of what has been written on the subject comes out of the state of New York. And for many years New York courts held that arbitrators were prohibited from awarding punitive damages. (I'm not sure of the present status of the matter in New York.) 
 
The AAA rules allow for remedies as are available at law and equity.
 
In most jurisdictions, the battle today probably has more to do with the enforceability of arbitration agreements that expressly prohibit arbitration. While I don't have any cites for you, I'm sure there are articles out there (typically advocating that these provisions not be enforced and highlighting supportive appellate decisions).
 
 

Murray S. Levin 
Professor of Business Law 
University of Kansas 
School of Business 
350 F. Summerfield Hall 
1300 Sunnyside Ave. 
Lawrence, KS 66045-7585 

785-864-7506 (Lawrence) 
913-262-2688 (Kansas City) 
785-864-5328 (Fax) 
[log in to unmask] 


________________________________

From: Academy of Legal Studies in Business (ALSB) Talk on behalf of Richard L. Coffinberger
Sent: Fri 11/30/2007 12:24 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Question re: arbitration and punitive damage awards



Colleagues: I have searched for information on whether an arbitrator can award punitive damages
to no avail.  I would appreciate some guidance and/or citations.

Thanks,
Rick
[log in to unmask]

----- Original Message -----
From: Robert Bird <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thursday, November 29, 2007 10:46 pm
Subject: Re: http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/

> An article of mine has actually been read, hooray!
>
> Thanks Marsha for the link.
>
> Robert
>
> Robert C. Bird
> Assistant Professor
> University of Connecticut
> email: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> View my research on my SSRN Author page:
> http://ssrn.com/author=56987 <http://ssrn.com/author=56987> 
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Academy of Legal Studies in Business (ALSB) Talk on behalf
> of Marsha Hass
> Sent: Thu 11/29/2007 8:13 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/
>
>
>
> Bird on the Duty of Good Faith in the Employment Context
>
>
> 
> <http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2007/11/29/rbird.jpg>  Robert C. Bird <mailto:[log in to unmask]>  (U. Conn. - Marketing) has just posted on SSRN his article (forthcoming Pace L. Rev.) An Employment Contract 'Instinct With an Obligation': Good Faith Costs and Contexts <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1033041> .  Here's an excerpt from the abstract:
>
>       This article arises from a symposium sponsored by Pace University
> School of Law celebrating the ninetieth anniversary of the famous
> decision of Wood v. Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon ....
>
>       Three challenges exist to the orderly development of the good
> faith doctrine in employment law. First, the meaning of good faith
> remains far from certain. Courts have intermingled good faith with
> other employment doctrines thereby hindering its widespread
> acceptance. Second, the good faith covenant in employment lacks
> mutuality. Usually bilateral in the contractual context, the
> covenant remains an obligation that usually runs only from the
> employer to the employee. The questions of whether the covenant
> should obligate employees and what the consequences of such an
> obligation could be remain unaddressed. Finally, and perhaps most
> interestingly, there is a limited understanding of the costs of
> the good faith duty. The emerging empirical work studying the
> effects of wrongful discharge law, of which the duty of good faith
> is a part, reveals potential economic costs of this important
> doctrine articulated by Judge Cardozo ninety years ago.
>
> Yes, indeed -- good faith in the employment context is clear as
> mud.  Good work, Robert!
>
> rb
>
> November 29, 2007 in Scholarship
> <http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/scholarship/index.html>  | Permalink <http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/2007/11/bird-on-the-dut.html>  | Comments (0) <http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/2007/11/bird-on-the-dut.html#comments>  | TrackBack (0) <http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/2007/11/bird-on-the-dut.html#trackback> 
>