A rather surprising bill made early strides before the House this session. The House Courts of Justice Civil Subcommittee recommended approval of HB 465. The Bill as introduced was as follows:
Jury verdict; excess damages; amendment of pleadings. Allows a court, in the event a jury returns a verdict for damages in excess of the amount requested, to amend the pleadings to conform them to the amount awarded and enter a judgment for such damages
Such a bill would have dramatically changed the state of law in Virginia. Not only would the ad damnum have been effectively rendered superfluous, but runaway verdicts could abound under such a rule. On January 27, 2010 the bill was Passed by indefinitely in the Courts of Justice Committee.
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