Drunk driving

Verdict: $31,100,000

Young girl suffered traumatic brain injuries when her vehicle was struck by a speeding, intoxicated driver (Landeros v. Torres, Kern County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Nicholas C. Rowley).

Cerebral palsy

Decision: $5,000,000

Mismanagement of labor results in birth of infant with cerebral palsy (Hernandez v. United States of America, Northern District Federal Court, Plaintiff attorney: Stanton T. Mathews).

Electrocution

Verdict: $5,322,356

Forty-nine-year-old worker was fatally electrocuted at a packaging plant after cutting into a cable that was supposedly de-energized (Confidential v. JCJ Electric Inc., Monterey County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Todd F. Nevell).

Job discrimination

Verdict: $2,468,141

Female firefighter with Fresno Fire Department was forced to resign after enduring discrimination based on gender, harassment, and false rumors (Maher v. City of Fresno, Eastern District Federal Court, Plaintiff attorney: Dan Siegel).

Motorcyclist injured

Settlement: $10,275,000

CHP officer drove his motorcycle over hydraulic fluid that leaked from a truck onto a roadway, fell and struck his head on the asphalt, and blamed the truck owner and helmet manufacturer for his brain injuries (Wood v. Scott, San Bernardino Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Otto L. Haselhoff).

Heart surgery

Settlement: $3,750,000

Child who underwent heart repair surgery sustained severe brain damage as a result of oxygen deprivation during the procedure (Confidential v. Confidential, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: John P. Blumberg).

Contractor fraud

Verdict: $2,545,963

Homeowners recovered for damages to their property during remodeling work by unlicensed contractor (Sapra v. Bokhari, Alameda County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Clifford Hirsch).

Pedestrian struck

Verdict: $1,159,270

Seventy-one-year-old man walking across a parking lot was knocked to the ground and dragged under a vehicle whose brakes had failed (Heldt v. Martin, Placer County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Kevin L. Elder).

Newborn stroke

Settlement: $1,000,000

Newborn infant suffered a stroke as a result of negligent care by hospital nursing staff (Jones v. Tenet Healthcare Corporation, Riverside County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Jeffrey A. Milman).

Forklift v. pedestrian

Settlement: $1,850,000

Woman working in the cold storage area of a warehouse was struck and injured by a forklift (Zegerman v. NZG Specialties Inc., Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Gerald Agnew).

Editor's Note: California Bar Journal publishes this abbreviated summary of important trials in California provided by Trials Digest. To report your case results, go to west.thomson.com/trialsdigest/form.aspx or call 415-344-3952.