Motorcyclist injured
Settlement: $2,000,000
Motorcyclist was severely injured when he crashed into a vehicle that made a sudden stop in front of him (Torchia v. Westgate Cleaning and Laundry, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Rahul Ravipudi).
Medical battery
Verdict: Defense
Parent of premature infant who underwent brain surgery alleged that he did not consent to the pain medication used, which he deemed a medical battery (Campen v. Louy, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Raymond R. Moore).
Head-on collision
Verdict: $10,820,976
Pizza delivery driver crossed into oncoming traffic and struck a vehicle, whose occupants sustained catastrophic injuries (Novak v. Pizza Hut Inc., San Diego County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorneys: John H. Gomez and John P. Fiske).
Trade secrets
Verdict: $1,000,000
Developer of vertical broiler was victim of misappropriation of trade secrets and fraud by competitor (Quantum Cooking Concepts v. LV Associates, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Luan K. Phan).
Delayed diagnosis
Settlement: $450,000
Patient with lesion on forehead alleged physician's delay in diagnosis of lymphoma resulted in the necessity for more aggressive treatment (Confidential v. Confidential, Orange County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Daniel M. Hodes).
Slip and fall
Verdict: Defense
Market patron alleged she sustained injury when she slipped and fell on beer that leaked while being stocked on store shelves (Saenz v. Northgate Gonzalez LLC, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Defense attorney: John J. Higgins).
Quadriplegia
Settlement: $13,500,000
Collision near a highway construction site left the driver of a vehicle a quadriplegic (Smith v. City of Palmdale, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Donald G. Liddy).
PCH collision
Settlement: $3,000,000
Forty-year-old driver was severely injured when he struck a vehicle that suddenly pulled out in front of him from a parked position (Confidential v. Confidential, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Ronald M. Papell).
Parking lot pedestrian
Verdict: Defense
Seventy-eight-year-old woman was struck by a van as she walked through the parking lot of a small shopping center (Marquez v. Guardado, Alameda County Superior Court, Defense attorney: Robert M. Maltz).
Auto tag
Settlement: $205,000
Sixteen-year-old passenger was injured when the vehicle in which he was riding crashed as a result of the driver engaging in a dangerous traffic game with another driver (Johnston v. Flores, Orange County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: Michael Louis Kelly).
Motorcycle death/injury
Settlement: $8,750,000
Wife was killed and husband injured when their motorcycle struck a vehicle that made a left turn in front of them (Buzenus v. Confidential, Riverside County Superior Court, Plaintiff attorney: John M. Feder).
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.