Foreign Punitive Damages Decisions and Class Actions in Italy

This chapter deals with the enforceability of U.S. opt-out class actions in continental Europe, with special attention to Italy, France and Spain. The study sets out by a thorough analysis of U.S. precedents concerning the availability of extra-compensatory damages in complex litigation (among others, Shady Grove Orthopedic Assoc. v. Allstate Ins. Co.), and then deepens into the principles of European law favoring recognition of U.S. opt-out class actions containing an award of extra-compensatory damages. Furthermore, this chapter aims to explore the great opportunities stemming from a renewed, constructive dialog between criminal and civil punitive sanctions, especially in the field of mass litigation