A unanimous Georgia Supreme Court struck down limits on jury awards in medical malpractice cases, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The court determined that a $350,000 cap on noneconomic damages, which includes compensation for a plaintiff's pain and suffering, violates the right to a jury trial as guaranteed under the Georgia Constitution. A 2005 law's cap on damage awards "clearly nullifies the jury's findings of fact regarding damages and thereby undermines the jury's basic function," Chief Justice Carol Hunstein wrote for the court.
