SEXUAL ABUSE & MOLESTATION

SEXUAL ABUSE & MOLESTATION Summaries provided by Kimberly Y. Chin, Allen Glaessner Hazelwood & Werth, LLP

X.M. v. Superior Court (2021) 68 Cal.App.5th 1014

Summary: Victims of child sexual abuse cannot recover treble damages against a public entity under Civil Code section 340.1 because Government Code section 818’s immunity against punitive damages applies. Discussion: X.M., a student a Maple Elementary School, sued Hesperia Unified School District (“District”) claiming he was assaulted on campus by one of their employees. He sought treble damages under Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1, alleging his assault resulted from HUSD’s cover up of a prior assault by the same employee. The trial court granted the District’s motion to strike the increased damages on the ground that treble damages are primarily punitive and therefore barred by Government Code section 818. X.M. file a petition for writ of mandate. The appellate court affirmed the trial court order. The appellate court affirmed that Government Code section 818 applies to damages that are primarily punitive, recognizing that the twin goals of punitive damages (retribution and deterrence) are not actually advanced if the defendant is a public agency and the tort is committed by an individual employee. While the appellate court recognized that treble damages are generally, but not always punitive, it held that Civil Code section 340.1 bore the hallmarks of punitive damages. The statutory text and the legislative history did not indicate compensation as the provision’s primary function as opposed to retribution and deterrence. As such, Government Code section 818’s immunity against punitive damages applies to Civil Code section 340.1 treble damages provision.