Section 21 Definition of Terms

• Library: Damages 2012

Nominal damages are a “trifling sum” awarded to a plaintiff when:

· there is no substantial loss or injury to be compensated, but still the law recognizes a technical invasion of rights or a breach of the defendant’s duty; or

· although there has been a real injury, the plaintiff’s evidence entirely fails to show its amount.

Black’s Law Dictionary 396 (7^th ed. 1999); Seelig v. Mo., K.&T. Ry. Co., 230 S.W. 94, 102 (Mo. 1921).

The terms “presumed damages” and “nominal damages” sometimes have been used interchangeably, creating...