In United States law, treble damages is a term that indicates that a statute permits a court to triple the amount of the actual/compensatory damages to be awarded to a prevailing plaintiff.
[1] Some statutes mandate awards of treble damages for all violations, such as the Clayton Antitrust Act[2] and RICO.
[3] Some statutes allow for an award of treble damages only if there is a showing that the violation was willful.
For example, "up to three times the amount found or assessed" may be awarded by a court in the United States for willful patent infringement.
[6] The United States Supreme Court determined in Commissioner v. Glenshaw Glass Co. that, like compensatory damages, which are not exempt from federal income tax (unless the award is from a personal injury claim), such taxes must be paid on the excess amount (the amount that exceeds the actual damages) of treble damages.