Facts

On the morning of April 27, 2011, plaintiff Ana Carranza, 45, slipped and fell in a store in Compton. The fall occurred near the self-contained juice cooler at the end of Aisle 1.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff alleged that she slipped on water that had leaked into the aisle way from the cooler, which was owned by Doe Company; that the leak was a slow leak the store employees should have noticed prior to the most recent sweep; that the store employees were not adequately trained on how to deal with a leak versus a spill; and that there was no reasonable policy in place to prevent overflow from drain pans in self-contained coolers located on store premises.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant contended that, from the video, that plaintiff was reading a newspaper ad as she was walking; that plaintiff was not paying attention to where she was walking and almost walked right into a display of canned goods; while store employees mopped up water following the fall, defendant claims that the sweeps sheets were in reasonable compliance; that the store was not on notice of any substance on the floor; that the store had an adequate maintenance policy regarding the cooler with a vendor.

Damages

Plaintiff claimed past medical bills were $233,869. Plaintiff also claimed a life care plan costing over $1 million for several surgical revisions of the stimulator, multi-level back fusion, a total knee replacement along with pain management and physiological and physical therapy. Additionally, plaintiff had no medical insurance or benefits, there was no evidence of any prior treatment for any of these conditions, and plaintiff denied any problems prior to her fall.

Injuries

Plaintiff landed on her left knee with the left foot bent inward and the right leg stretched outward. Five months post-incident, she underwent left knee arthroscopic surgery, and received one sympathetic injection. Plaintiff claimed she was then diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), and received a spinal cord stimulator. Defendant's medical experts did not agree it was CRPS, but did agree that it was a chronic pain syndrome that did respond to a pain stimulator.

Result

The case settled for $1,250,000.

Other Information

MEDIATOR: Hon. Joe Hilberman.