Whistleblower Not Entitled to Punitive or Exemplary Damages, Says Amazon

Amazon denies Sonia Sofer’s allegations that the company forced her to resign as a senior program manager after it began retaliating against her for filing whistleblower reports internally about its data collection practices involving the Astro home robot when the product was in beta testing in 2021 (see 2403130002), said the company’s answer Friday (docket 5:24-cv-01515) in U.S. District Court for Northern California in San Jose. Amazon is informed, and believes that further investigation and discovery will reveal, and on that basis alleges, that Sofer isn’t entitled to recover punitive or exemplary damages, said its answer. That’s because the plaintiff failed to state facts sufficient to state a claim for damages, it said. Amazon also committed no acts justifying an award of punitive or exemplary damages, it said. The company also didn’t supervise employees “with conscious disregard for the rights and/or safety of others," it said. It also asserts that no officer, director or managing agent “committed, authorized or ratified any improper acts,” it said.