CACI No. 3440. Damages
Judicial Council of California Civil Jury Instructions (2023 edition)
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3440.Damages
If you decide that [name of plaintiff] has proved [his/her/nonbinary
pronoun/its] claim against [name of defendant], you also must decide how
much money will reasonably compensate [name of plaintiff] for the harm.
This compensation is called “damages.”
The amount of damages must include an award for all harm that was
caused by [name of defendant], even if the particular harm could not have
been anticipated.
[Name of plaintiff] must prove the amount of [his/her/nonbinary pronoun/
its] damages. However, [name of plaintiff] does not have to prove the
exact amount of damages that will provide reasonable compensation for
the harm. You must not speculate or guess in awarding damages.
The following are the specific items of damages claimed by [name of
plaintiff]:
1. [Loss of reasonably anticipated sales and profits];
2. [An increase in [name of plaintiff]’s expenses];
3. [Insert other applicable item of damage].
New September 2003
Sources and Authority
• Private Right of Action for Antitrust Violation. Business and Professions Code
section 16750(a).
• “The plaintiff in a Cartwright Act proceeding must show that an antitrust
violation was the proximate cause of his injuries. The frequently stated ‘standing
to sue’ requirement is merely a rule that an action for violation of the antitrust
laws may be maintained only by a party within the ‘target area’ of the antitrust
violation, and not by one incidentally injured thereby. An ‘antitrust injury’ must
be proved; that is, the type of injury the antitrust laws were intended to prevent,
and which flows from the invidious conduct which renders defendants’ acts
unlawful. Finally, a plaintiff must show an injury within the area of the economy
that is endangered by a breakdown of competitive conditions.” (Kolling v. Dow
Jones & Co. (1982) 137 Cal.App.3d 709, 723-724 [187 Cal.Rptr. 797], internal
citations and footnote omitted.)
• “ ‘[D]amage issues in these cases are rarely susceptible of the kind of concrete,
detailed proof of injury which is available in other contexts . . . . [I]n the
absence of more precise proof, the factfinder may “conclude as a matter of just
and reasonable inference from the proof of defendants’ wrongful acts and their
tendency to injure plaintiffs’ business, and from the evidence of the decline in
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prices, profits and values, not shown to be attributable to other causes, that
defendants’ wrongful acts had caused damage to the plaintiffs.” ’ ” (Diesel Elec.
Sales and Serv., Inc. v. Marco Marine San Diego, Inc. (1993) 16 Cal.App.4th
202, 219-220 [20 Cal.Rptr.2d 62], internal citations omitted.)
Secondary Sources
1 Witkin, Summary of California Law (11th ed. 2017) Contracts, § 615
6 Antitrust Laws and Trade Regulation, Ch. 105, California, § 105.09 (Matthew
Bender)
3 Levy et al., California Torts, Ch. 40, Fraud and Deceit and Other Business Torts,
§ 40.172 (Matthew Bender)
49 California Forms of Pleading and Practice, Ch. 565, Unfair Competition,
§ 565.34[3] (Matthew Bender)
1 Matthew Bender Practice Guide: California Unfair Competition and Business
Torts, Ch. 5, Antitrust, 5.45, 5.48-5.50, 5.66[5], 5.67-5.75
3441-3499. Reserved for Future Use
CACI No. 3440 CARTWRIGHT ACT
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© Judicial Council of California.
