| nominal damages | A term used when a judge or jury finds in favor of one party to a lawsuit - often because a law requires them to do so - but concludes that no real harm was done and therefore awards a very small amount of money. For example, if one neighbor sues another for libel based on untrue things the second neighbor said about the first, a jury might conclude that although libel technically occurred, no serious damage was done to the first neighbor's reputation and consequentially award nominal damages of $1.00. |
Glossary
