Facts

The plaintiffs are the four adult children of the decedent who was killed in a 2005 trucking accident on I-15 near Los Banos. The decedent was a passenger in a truck, and was the wife of the truck driver. Through the post-accident investigation and discovery, it was confirmed that the accident was caused when the truck driver, in the course and scope of his employment, lost control of the truck, and that the decedent was not at fault for the accident. Liability for this accident was stipulated prior to trial.

Additionally, it was stipulated that the decedent would have lived 30 years, thus, 33 years of damages for four children was at issue.

Settlement Discussions

The plaintiffs' last pretrial demand was $3.5 million. The defendant's last offer was $200,000.

Damages

The plaintiffs demanded a verdict between $1.2 and $4 million from the jury at trial. The defendant recommended $250,000.

Other Information

Due to the liability stipulation, neither party presented any experts at trial. The only witnesses who testified at trial were the four plaintiffs, their stepfather who drove the truck, and the decedent's sister, who lived with the decedent since 2003. Other than a series of pre-2001 photographs, the plaintiffs presented no documentary evidence of their contact with their mother other than cellular phone records, which were subpoenaed by defendants for two out of four of the plaintiffs. During trial, the plaintiffs tried, then abandoned their effort to introduce new telephone records that allegedly added several hundred telephone calls to prove their communication with their mother.

Deliberation

one hour

Length

five days