Golf cart fall
Award: $4,300,000
A 56-year-old renowned photographer was injured when she was thrown from a golf cart and fell 15 feet into a ravine because the cart path was camouflaged by vegetation (Meisels v. San Geronimo Golf Course, San Francisco County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Stephen M. Murphy).

Worker crushed
Award: $8,900,000
A 21-year-old college student sustained a leg amputation and other serious injuries when he was pinned between two water trucks at a construction site (Wise v. J&M Inc., Alameda County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: William B. Smith).

Autism and pesticides
Award: Defense
A 13-year-old boy's autism was blamed on in utero exposure to pesticides (Roberti v. Andy's Termite & Pest Control, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Alan H. Lazar).

Vehicle negligence
Award: $1,100,000
A 44-year-old man was seriously injured when a minivan driven by a nanny transporting her charges to a park turned left in front of him (Combs v. Mendez, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: David S. Brown).

Asbestos exposure
Award: $5,150,900
The family of a career machinist mate who died of malignant pleural mesothelioma attributed his death to 37 years of exposure to asbestos supplied by the U.S. Navy (Walmach v. Aqua-Chem, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Sean Tracey).

Construction accident
Award: Defense
A worker operating a pressure washer who inadvertently shot himself in the foot alleged a defectively designed product (Salazar v. United Rentals Inc., Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney Thomas M. Murphy).

Legal malpractice
Award: $750,865
A general contractor who had not been paid for repair work she performed on a condominium project following an earthquake sued her attorneys for failing to pursue her judgment debtors after they filed for bankruptcy (Cardet v. Burlison, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Daniel R. Wildish).

Medical malpractice
Award: Defense
The family of a woman who sought treatment in an emergency room following a motor vehicle accident alleged that her death was the result of negligent diagnosis and treatment (Paul v. Sharp Memorial Hospital, San Diego County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Stephen T. Sigler).

Dog attack
Award: $60,000
A minor student was attacked by a Rottweiler on school property (Johnson v. Lacey, Alameda County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Louis E. Duvernay).

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.