Jurimatic: Verdicts and Settlements

Mikhail Gershzon filed a class-action lawsuit against ZOA Energy, LLC, alleging that the company’s "0 Preservatives" marketing was false and deceptive. Despite the prominent "clean label" claims, the energy drinks contained citric acid, which is classified by the FDA as a chemical preservative. The plaintiff argued that health-conscious consumers paid a price premium for what they believed was a preservative-free product. ZOA Energy denied any wrongdoing but agreed to a $3,000,000 settlement to resolve the claims on a nationwide scale.

On a clear afternoon in April 2019, the intersection of Santa Clara Street and First Street in Arcadia became the site of a life-altering collision. Andrew M. Nuckles was commuting eastbound in a designated bike lane when Ling M. Wu, driving a 2014 Lexus ES350, attempted a sudden right-hand turn. The maneuver cut directly across the cyclist’s path, leading to a violent impact. The ensuing legal battle centered on whether the driver failed to maintain a proper lookout. Despite defense claims that the cyclist was partially at fault and that his medical bills were inflated, a Los Angeles jury held the driver fully accountable. The panel ultimately awarded Nuckles over $3.2 million, primarily to cover a lifetime of future medical care and the profound "noneconomic" toll of physical pain and mental suffering.

On July 3, 2023, Mayra Herrera Padilla entered a Presidente Supermarket in Miami as a business invitee. While walking through the aisles, she slipped on a "slick, muddy liquid" later identified as fabric softener. The fall resulted in severe, permanent physical injuries and significant mental anguish. Padilla sued for negligence, alleging the store failed to maintain a safe floor or provide adequate warning signs. Following a trial in December 2025, a Miami-Dade jury found in favor of Padilla, awarding her $89,220 for medical expenses and pain and suffering.

In the California Superior Court case of Barlie v. Car, Lillian Barlie secured a $5,175,000 verdict after a vehicle struck her in a Trader Joe's shopping center parking lot. The six-year legal battle focused on whether the accident was caused by the driver’s recklessness or a "dangerous condition" created by the property’s layout. While the Plaintiff argued that a lack of protective bollards and poor signage contributed to the collision, the jury cleared the corporate property owners of liability. Instead, they assigned 95% of the fault to the driver, Monica Rose Marie Car, and 5% to Barlie. The substantial award accounts for Barlie’s chronic pain, loss of mobility, and the lifelong medical care required as a result of the catastrophic injuries sustained.

The City and County of San Francisco agreed to a $5,845,000 settlement to resolve a harrowing class-action lawsuit involving residents of Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center. Lead plaintiffs Tommy O. Johnson and an anonymous resident, John Doe, alleged that hospital staff had cultivated a "culture of abuse" where vulnerable patients were subjected to unauthorized chemical sedation and egregious privacy violations. Investigations revealed that employees had taken and shared sexually explicit photographs and videos of approximately 130 residents for personal amusement. The settlement followed federal citations and significant civil penalties, providing a measure of justice for the elderly and dependent adults whose fundamental rights to dignity and safety were discarded by the municipal facility.

A group of four long-term employees at UCLA Health Vernon Goodwin, Mary Mathis-Hargett, Ruben Ruiz, and Jorge Ramirez filed a significant legal action against the university and William Dunne, the Administrative Director of Security Services . The staff members alleged that they were subjected to a decade of systematic harassment, offensive racial stereotyping, and mockery regarding their medical conditions and disabilities. While UCLA’s own internal investigation eventually substantiated many of these claims, including findings of significant pay disparities based on race, the university was accused of failing to act for years while the abuse continued. The litigation concluded with a $5.7 million settlement to compensate the Plaintiffs for emotional distress and financial losses.

Gemini said In the civil rights case Slade Douglas v. City of Los Angeles, a federal jury awarded $6,789,000 to a military veteran following a 2019 welfare check that escalated into an unlawful arrest and forced medical procedure. The incident began when LAPD Officers Jeffrey Yabana and Jeremy Wheeler responded to a hotline referral, eventually seizing Mr. Douglas’s phone and arresting him without probable cause after he attempted to report their provocative behavior. During the encounter, the officers ignored Mr. Douglas's pre-existing spinal injuries, causing permanent nerve damage through improper handcuffing, and later oversaw a non-consensual, painful catheterization while he was sedated at a hospital. The jury found the officers liable for First Amendment retaliation, false imprisonment, negligence, and ADA violations, awarding over $6.6 million in compensatory damages and $173,000 in punitive damages for conduct deemed malicious and oppressive.

Rafael Navarro, a former cashier at Floor and Decor in Oxnard, California, led a representative enforcement action under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) against the national retailer. The lawsuit alleged that the company maintained centralized corporate policies that systematically violated California labor laws, including failing to pay overtime, denying proper meal and rest periods, and issuing inaccurate wage statements. A significant portion of the claim focused on the company’s failure to provide stools or seats for cashiers, despite the work allowing for a seated position. To resolve the litigation, Floor and Decor agreed to a total settlement of $1,200,000.

In January 2026, a Miami-Dade jury concluded a long-running personal injury battle, finding that the negligence of Miami-Dade County, John Chaparro, and a parked semi-truck driver combined to cause a permanent injury to Plaintiff Griselle Ramos. While the County argued that Ramos failed to wear a seatbelt and shared the blame, the jury ultimately held the County 45% responsible for the incident. Ramos received a total of $8,335.20 for past medical expenses after the court verified her injuries reached the legal threshold of permanency.

On April 25, 2019, 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon was standing near a parked Chevrolet Tahoe in Key Largo, Florida, when she was struck and killed by a 2019 Tesla Model S traveling at approximately 70 miles per hour. The Tesla driver had engaged the vehicle’s "Autopilot" system and was distracted by his phone, relying on the technology to detect obstacles. The vehicle's sensors failed to recognize the stationary SUV, leading to a high-speed collision that also severely injured Dillon Angulo. The subsequent lawsuit alleged that Tesla’s Autopilot contained design defects, including a failure to adequately monitor driver engagement and detect stationary objects. In August 2025, a jury found Tesla 35% liable for the incident, determining that the vehicle was marketed with a defect that served as a legal cause of the damages.

A Los Angeles Superior Court jury delivered a staggering blow to Sysco Riverside, Inc., awarding over $52 million to five former employees who stood up against dangerous working conditions. The plaintiffs, who served as yard "spotters," alleged that the food distribution giant maintained a culture that prioritized delivery speed over public and employee safety. After six years of litigation, the jury found that the workers faced systematic harassment and were ultimately forced out of their jobs for reporting safety hazards, such as excessive speeding in the truck yard. The verdict included approximately $31 million in compensatory damages for emotional distress and lost wages, followed by $21.3 million in punitive damages to penalize the company's "malice and oppression".

On August 7, 2020, Jeffrey Alexander Monroy was assisting his father with pool repairs in Rancho Mirage when he left the site to find a phone. Residents reported a "suspicious person" in black clothing, leading to an encounter with Corporal Ruben Perez. As Jeffrey and his brother fled, Corporal Perez fired five shots into Jeffrey's back without issuing verbal warnings. The family alleged Jeffrey was in the midst of a mental health crisis at the time of the shooting. Following a trial in the U.S. District Court, a jury found that the officer used excessive force and awarded $13.1 million in total damages, assigning 70% of the negligence to the officer.