Compensation, punishment, and deterrence: a survey on the purpose of tort damages in the case of a defective car accident in Japan

Daisuke Mori (), Shuichi Takahashi and Yasuhiro Ikeda
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Daisuke Mori: Kumamoto University
Shuichi Takahashi: Miyagi University of Education
Yasuhiro Ikeda: Kumamoto University

Asia-Pacific Journal of Regional Science, 2017, vol. 1, issue 2, No 17, 589-624

Abstract: Abstract Under Japanese tort law, the main purpose of damages is the compensation of a victim. The punishment of the offender and determent of similar future conduct are considered only a subordinate effect and the purpose of criminal sanctions. The Japanese court even states that punitive damages that are imposed for punishment or deterrence are contrary to the fundamental principles of the Japanese legal system. However, do ordinary Japanese people support these ideas? In this study, we investigate how the legal system of damages is perceived by means of a survey. In response to a story about a car accident caused by design flaws, we asked respondents how much they think the manufacturer should pay the victim in damages, and inquire as to how much they consider certain factors, such as compensation and deterrence. We statistically analyzed the data and found that although most consider compensation when they estimate the appropriate amount of damages, many consider deterrence and punishment as well. We demonstrate that the more they consider deterrence and punishment, the larger the amount of estimated damages becomes. In addition, we find that variances in the amount of damages increases along with the extent to which they consider these factors.

Keywords: Purpose of damages; Tort law in Japan; Survey experiment; Punitive damages; Decoupling liability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C21 C83 K13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1007/s41685-017-0059-8

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