Missouri Revised Statutes
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 510.265 (2026)
Limitations on punitive damages in certain cases
✓ current as of May 2026
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510.265. Limitations on punitive damages in certain cases. — 1. No award of punitive damages against any defendant shall exceed the greater of:
(1) Five hundred thousand dollars; or
(2) Five times the net amount of the judgment awarded to the plaintiff against the defendant.
Such limitations shall not apply if the state of Missouri is the plaintiff requesting the award of punitive damages, or the defendant pleads guilty to or is convicted of a felony arising out of the acts or omissions pled by the plaintiff.2. The provisions of this section and sections 510.261 and 510.263 shall not apply to civil actions brought under section 213.111 that allege a violation of section 213.040, 213.045, 213.050, or 213.070, to the extent that the alleged violation of section 213.070 relates to or involves a violation of section 213.040, 213.045, or 213.050, or subdivision (3) of subsection 1 of section 213.070 as it relates to housing.
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(L. 2005 H.B. 393, A.L. 2020 S.B. 591)
CROSS REFERENCE:
Applicability of statute changes for cases filed after August 28, 2005, 538.305; for cases filed after August 28, 2020, 510.262
(2014) Section's cap on punitive damage awards is unconstitutional under Article I, Section 22 (a) of Missouri Constitution; right to a jury trial in 1820 included right to have a jury determine amount of punitive damages in an action for fraud. Lewellen v. Franklin, 441 S.W.3d 136 (Mo.banc).
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 26
cases (3 in the last 5 years), 2008–2023 · leading case: Est. of Overbey v. Chad Franklin Nat'l Auto Sales North, LLC, 361 S.W.3d 364 (Mo. 2012).
Est. of Overbey v. Chad Franklin Nat'l Auto Sales North, LLC, 361 S.W.3d 364 (Mo. 2012). “By setting substantive limits on recovery regardless of the evidence, statutes such as section 510.265, RSMo, unavoidably limit the constitutional role of the jury.”
Lillian M. Lewellen, Appellant/Cross-Respondent v. Chad Franklin & Chad Franklin Nat'l Auto Sales North, LLC, Respondents/Cross-Appellants., 441 S.W.3d 136 (Mo. 2014). “Pursuant to section 510.265, 1 the circuit court reduced the punitive damages awards against Mr.”
Jason D. Dodson & Jason D. Dodson, Jr., a Minor, & Eva Raine Dodson-Lohse, a Minor, & August William Davis Dodson, a Minor, said Minors appearing by the duly appointed Next Friend Jason D. Dodson, Respondent/Cross-Appellant v. Robert P. Ferrara, M.D., & Mercy Clinic Heart & Vascular, LLC, Appellants/Cross-Respondents., 491 S.W.3d 542 (Mo. 2016). “The plaintiff did not challenge the application of the caps in section 510.265, RSMo Supp. 2013, to the punitive damages award under the MMPA because Overbey previously held that caps on the amount of damages recoverable under a statutory cause of action were not…”
Gail & Darrell Mansfield v. Caleb Horner & John Horner, 443 S.W.3d 627 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014). “The Horners’ motion to open, amend, and correct the judgment asserted that the Horners were entitled to remittitur because section 510.265 10 limits damages for aggravating circumstances to five times the net amount of the judgment.”
Hervey v. Missouri Dep't of Corr., 379 S.W.3d 156 (Mo. 2012). “While it acknowledges that there is no direct authority interpreting the phrase “net amount of the judgment” under section 510.265, RSMo 2000, it argues the cases it cites should give the Court guidance in determining the “net amount of the judgment.”
City of Harrisonville, Appellant-Respondent v. McCall Serv. Stations d/b/a Big Tank Oil, the Missouri Petroleum Storage Tank Ins. Fund, 495 S.W.3d 738 (Mo. 2016). “Therefore, § 510.265, the cap on punitive damages, is applicable unless application would violate a provision of the Missouri or United States Constitution.”
Poage v. Crane Co., 523 S.W.3d 496 (Mo. Ct. App. 2017). “Poage’s punitive damages award: (1) it did not comport with principles of due process, (2) it facially exceeds fair compensation, and (3) the punitive damages award exceeds the statutory cap of § 510.265. 9 a. Standard of Review for Remittitur of Punitive Damages “Generally, the…”
Peel v. Credit Acceptance Corp., 408 S.W.3d 191 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013). “The trial court, pursuant to the statutory cap in section 510.265, 2 reduced the punitive award to $881,789.”
Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker, 554 U.S. 471 (2008). “2007) (greater of 2:1 or $250,000); Colo.Rev.Stat. Ann.”
Heckadon v. CFS Enter., Inc., 400 S.W.3d 372 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013). “Nevertheless, Appellants contend that the punitive damages caps set forth in § 510.265 indicate that Missouri law favors a limit on punitive damages of a 5:1 ratio.”
Fireworks Restoration Co. v. Hosto, 371 S.W.3d 83 (Mo. Ct. App. 2012). “As the Missouri Supreme Court noted in Estate of Overbey , this rationale is supported by the language of Section 510.265 RSMo Cum. Supp.2008, which codifies a cap to punitive damage awards.”
Tanisha Ross-Paige v. Saint Louis Metro. Police Dep't Steven A. Gori, Michael A. Deeba, Sr., Saint Louis Bd. of Police Commissioners, Richard H. Gray, Bettye Battle Turner, Thomas J. Irwin, & Francis G. Slay, 492 S.W.3d 164 (Mo. 2016). “Ross-Paige filed a post-trial motion to alter or amend the judgment to include an award of attorneys’ fees, costs, and prejudgment and post-judgment interest, Defendants filed a motion to reduce the punitive damages award pursuant to the statutory cap set forth in section…”
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 510.265(1) — 1 case
Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker, 554 U.S. 471 (2008). “2007) (greater of 2:1 or $250,000); Colo.Rev.Stat. Ann.”
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 510.265(2) — 1 case
Peel v. Credit Acceptance Corp., 408 S.W.3d 191 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013). “The trial court, pursuant to the statutory cap in section 510.265, 2 reduced the punitive award to $881,789.”
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