直接被害人死亡後之懲罰性賠償金的請求主體研究──以美國《遺存訴因法》及《不當致死法》之規範為鑑

A Study on the Claimant of Punitive Damages After the Death of a Direct Victim: Lessons from the Survival Statutes and Wrongful Death Statutes of the United States

企業經營者之瑕疵產品或服務致被害人受有損害，其懲罰性賠償金責任實不因該人之死亡而免除，如此方能落實該賠償金的制度目的。然因民法第6條之故，及消費者保護法第7條、第51條的規定不備，即衍生「致被害人當場死亡的侵權行為應否受懲罰性賠償金及請求主體究屬何人」的爭議，且迄今無論是司法判決或學者論著或彼此間仍是見解分歧。對此，本文在研究美國遺存訴因法與不當致死法之規定後，重新檢視我國法上關於僅致財損或非財損、致傷、致當場或嗣後死亡等侵權行為，於被害人訴訟前或訴訟中死亡時，是否存有及究屬何人係為懲罰性賠償金請求主體的問題，並對各種論述意見予以回應。最後，本文以為此一問題唯有修法一途，從而於文末提出具體草案條文，以供日後修法時參考。

When a business owner provides defective products or services that cause damage to the victim, his/her punitive damages liability should not be extinguished when the person is dead; thus, the purpose of the punitive damages system can be implemented. However, the dispute on “Should the action of tort that caused the death of the victim on the spot receive punitive damages? And who is the subject of the request?” is derived due to the inadequate provisions in Article 6 of the Civil Code as well as Article 7 and Article 51 of the Consumer Protection Act. Up to now, different opinions still remain in judicial judgments, scholars’ writings or each other. By understanding the provisions of the survival statutes and wrongful death statutes in the U.S., this study attempts to reexamine the action of tort concerning the cause of pecuniary loss, the cause of non-pecuniary loss, the cause of injuries, the cause of death on the spot, and subsequent death in the laws of our country in order to clarify whether the subject of the request for punitive damages truly exists and who it will be, and respond to various opinions. Finally, in this study, it is believed the only solution is to amend the law so as to preserve the cause of action for the deceased, create a cause of action for the successor, or stipulate consumer protection groups for estate administrator when there is no successor. As a result, a consumer lawsuit can be filed to request punitive damages for the benefit of the deceased, which would be the right direction.