Paper roll kills worker
Award: $3,243,500A heavy roll of paper fell from the open door of a
boxcar and killed the warehouse worker unloading the shipment (Salazar v. Fraser Paper
Co., Los Angeles County Superior Court).
Caltrans employee harassed
Award: $500,000
Caltrans failed to prevent sexual harassment and plaintiff suffered retaliation from
employees and supervisors (Walters v. State of California, Department of Trans-portation
(Caltrans), Alameda County Superior Court).
Neurosurgeon malpractice
Award: $661,888
A neurosurgeon's failure to perform a bone graft on a boat accident victim resulted in
curvature of her spine (Saylor v. Oygar, Riverside County Superior Court).
Blowout causes rollover
Award: $12,858,000
The blowout of a worn tire on a church van caused the vehicle to roll over and injure
an ejected passenger (Fuller v. Greater Bethany Community Church, Los Angeles County
Superior Court).
Pump hose hits worker
Award: $340,000
The metal hose end of a concrete pump flew up and injured a worker's face, teeth and
jaws (Marx v. J.R. Concrete Pumping, San Diego County Superior Court).
Firm awarded lost profits
Award: $1,256,000
A herb company lost profits while defending against third-party claims after a
warehouse fire (Insurance Co. of North America v. Fmali Herb Company Inc., Santa Cruz
County Superior Court).
Gardener's legs crushed
Award: $1,817,000
During heavy fog, a driver veered into a gardener unloading equipment from the back of
his truck (Acosta v. Jeong, Los Angeles County Superior Court).
Teen-ager shoots friend
Award: Defense
No liability was found against the maker of the Beretta handgun involved in the
accidental shooting of a 15-year-old (Dix v. Beretta U.S.A. Corp., Alameda County Superior
Court).
Truck crashes into home
Award: Defense
A child claimed that she suffered severe emotional upset as a result of a defendant's
truck crashing into her room at 6:30 a.m. (Monaco v. Haskell, San Joaquin County Superior
Court).
Fund manager defamed
Award: $975,500
A fund manager claimed he was libeled in a union publication and slandered at a union
function (Lawrence v. District Council of Painters No. 8, San Francisco County Superior
Court).
EDITOR'S NOTE: California Bar Journal publishes this abbreviated summary of
important trials in California provided by Trials Digest Publishing Inc. For a free
complete trial report on any case listed, call 510/420-1800. |
