In Steel Techs., Inc. v. Congleton, 2007 Ky. LEXIS 125 (Ky. 2007), the Kentucky Supreme Court weighed in on three key issues that many of the state's personal injury litigators often confront. First, the Court confirmed that the state's impact requirement for negligent emotional distress claims remains valid, but, significantly, it also suggested that it may jetison the requirement in the near future. Second, the Court set clear guidelines for preserving a claim of error regarding the insufficiency of evidence at trial. Third, the Court evaluated the Constitutionality of a punitive damage award pursuant to recent U.S. Supreme Court guidelines arising from State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Campbell, 538 U.S. 408 (U.S. 2003) and BMWof N. Am. v. Gore, 517 U.S. 559 (U.S. 1996).

Ronald W. Eades, Professor of Law at the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville explains the Steel Techs case in this commentary.