Wage dispute Award: $4,106,833,878 Corporate executive alleged he was terminated in retaliation for his efforts to obtain all wages and other compensation owed him under the terms of his employment contract (Chester v. iFreedom Communications Inc., Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Scot D. Bernstein). Construction cave-in Award: $5,500,000 Two workers were seriously injured, one becoming a paraplegic, when they were trapped in a cave-in at an excavation site resulting from inadequate shoring (Galeano v. Gothelf, San Francisco County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Joseph M. Breall). Cancer surgery Award: Defense Rectal cancer patient alleged the surgery he underwent to treat his condition was negligently performed, resulting in chronic pain and addiction to narcotics (Crawford v. City of Hope National Medical Center, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Kent T. Brandmeyer). Egg donations Award: $4,230,000 Doctors at UCI Center for Reproductive Health were found to have engaged in the misappropriation and nonconsensual transfer of donor eggs, several of which resulted in live births (Beasley v. Regents of the University of California, Orange County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Daniel M. Hodes). Trip and fall Award: $115,384 Hospital admissions clerk injured her arm when she tripped and fell on a two-inch raised portion of sidewalk in front of her home (Hinson v. City of Salinas, Monterey County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Kenneth J. Kroopf). Student stroke Award: $96,000,000 Student struck on the head by a volleyball thrown by another student in a game of dodgeball suffered a stroke that left him in need of 24-hr LVN care for life (Confidential v. Confidential, Confidential Venue, Plaintiff attorney: Mike Bomberger). Third-degree burns Award: $20,000,000 Outside electrician attempting to repair a power outage on a college campus was severely burned and lost an arm as a result of a campus electrician inadvertently energizing a transformer station (Jones v. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Steven V. Angarella). Patient suicide Award: Defense Psychiatric facility was allegedly responsible for a patient’s suicide for failing to take adequate precautions to protect the patient from harming himself (Gonzalez v. Penn Mar Therapeutic Center, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Raymond L. Blessey).
Editor's Note: California Bar Journal publishes this abbreviated summary of important trials in California provided by Trials Digest, a Thomson West business. To report your case results, go to west.thomson.com/trialsdigest/form.asp or call 415-344-6000.
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