Knight-Ridder settled a $24 million libel award last summer.

This judgement significantly reduced the level of subsequent libel awards.

It is by far the largest libel award against a newspaper ever to withstand review by state and Federal courts, legal experts said.

In the 1980's, he said, three out of four juries made libel awards to plaintiffs averaging $1 million each.

New York's highest court today reversed a libel award against a newspaper that said a high school football coach had cursed and belittled his players.

Legal experts said the libel award was the largest in history, but some said they doubted it would be sustained on appeal.

Most libel awards, especially those of large amounts, are reduced on appeal because the plantiff must prove that significant damage has resulted from the libel.

Legal experts said it was the largest libel award in history.

Punitive damages figured in three out of five libel awards.

He reportedly won a largely symbolic libel award of 100,000 francs in 1950 when the paper refused to print his letter of denial.