Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-cb9f654ff-k7rjm Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-09-09T15:38:59.722Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Introduction

Tort Law Punishes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 August 2025

María Guadalupe Martínez Alles
Affiliation:
University of Denver
Get access

Summary

Torts and Retribution is the first work of its kind to offer a comprehensive analytical retributive framework for punitive damages across legal jurisdictions. It expands the scope of tort theory by unchaining it from the canonically exclusive perspective of the defendant by integrating the long-overlooked perspective of victims of reprehensible wrongdoing seeking punitive awards. Its cross-disciplinary approach brings to tort theory insights from empirical research on social cognition and theoretical debates over the retributive justifications for the imposition of punishment under a conceptual framework coined Relational Retribution. This framework suits both the bilateral structure of tort law and the proactive role allocated to the victim in tort litigation. By recognizing the fundamental connection between the defendant and the plaintiff, Relational Retribution focuses both on punishment as the imposition of a deserved sanction and on the significance of the wrongdoing for the victims and their demand for denunciation and value affirmation.

Information

Type
Chapter
Information
Torts and Retribution
The Case for Punitive Damages
, pp. 1 - 16
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Accessibility compliance for the PDF of this book is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×