If the award to the plaintiff exceeds $500, the show pays the entire amount.
When the presiding judge resignedly replies they are not, it is implied the award will far exceed expectations.
The awards, based in large part on a victim's lost earning power, could well exceed $1 million per family.
Finally, the amount by which the total award exceeds the prescribed element must also be specified.
In the new study, 12 awards exceeded $1 million, as against 11 awards of that size in 1983-84 and 9 in 1981-1982.
In cases of death and severe injury, such awards routinely exceed $1 million.
Nationally, 62 awards exceeded $1 million in 1987, the latest year for which data are available, down from 92 in 1986.
His award exceeded the $79.9 million sought by the families.
These awards have increased exponentially over the last few years and far exceed current market trends.
An award based on lost profits almost certainly would have far exceeded an award for royalties.