Missouri Revised Statutes













Chapter 640

Department of Natural Resources

←640.235

Section 640.236.1

640.240→

August 28, 2015

Punitive and exemplary damages, exempt from, when.

640.236. In all civil actions involving claims for exposure or

contamination arising from the ownership, maintenance, management, or

control of underground hard rock mining or hard rock milling sites that

ceased operations prior to January 1, 1975, or such claims that arise from

chat or tailings generated at those sites, brought against persons or

entities alleged to have owned, maintained, managed, or controlled such

sites, chat, or tailings at any time, such persons and entities shall be

exempt from punitive or exemplary damages with respect to all such claims

that relate in any way to the ownership, maintenance, management, or

control of such sites, chat, or tailings, so long as such persons or

entities or their employees, agents, owners, parent, subsidiary, or any

related companies have made or are making good faith efforts to remediate

such sites. Any evidence may be introduced to demonstrate good faith

efforts to remediate including substantial compliance with an order or

permit issued by or negotiated with either the state of Missouri or the

United States concerning remediation or closure. The total of any awards

of punitive or exemplary damages shall not exceed two million five hundred

thousand dollars in the aggregate as to all defendants in a civil action

within this section. The provisions of section 537.675 shall not apply to

such action, and one-half of any such awards for punitive or exemplary

damages shall be paid into the Missouri lead abatement loan fund

established under section 701.337. Nothing in this section shall be

construed as precluding any party from pursuing compensatory damages,

including claims for natural resource damages.



(L. 2013 H.B. 650)



*Effective 10-11-13, see § 21.250. H.B. 650 was vetoed July 12, 2013.

The veto was overridden on September 11, 2013.







Top



Missouri General Assembly



Copyright © Missouri Legislature, all rights reserved.