Nanette Peavy v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Published: Dec. 7, 1996 | Result Date: Nov. 14, 1996 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: SCV18856 – $0
Judge
Court
San Bernardino Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
Melvin M. Friedlander
(technical)
Charles R. Sadler
(medical)
Defendant
Philip H. Reiswig
(medical)
Facts
On Feb. 20, 1994, plaintiff Nanette Peavy, a 38-year-old workers' compensation claims examiner, slipped and fell in the entrance area at defendant Wal-Mart in Colton. It had been raining earlier that day. The plaintiff claimed that she stepped off a large rubber mat onto a ceramic tile floor and fell onto her left side. The plaintiff claimed that dripping water from shopping carts that were recently brought in to the store caused a dangerous condition. The plaintiff brought this action against the store based on negligence and premises liability (dangerous condition) theories of recovery.
Settlement Discussions
The plaintiff made a settlement demand for $75,000. The defendant offered to waive costs in exchange for dismissal.
Specials in Evidence
$2,059 $__________________ defends on future surgery $30,000 to $40,000
Injuries
The plaintiff alleged she sustained lumbosacral strain, neuritis of toes two through five of the right foot and disc herniation with nerve impingement, requiring future lumbar spine surgery and resulting in continued low-back pain, numbness and tingling in the feet.
Other Information
The verdict was reached approximately one year and nine months after the case was filed. ARBITRATION: An arbitration was held before Cyrus J. Lemmon, Esq. resulting in a defense award plus costs of suit. The plaintiff requested a trial de novo. EXPERT TESTIMONY: The plaintiff's expert argued that more carpeting should have been placed in the store and that the condition is naturally dangerous because people stepping from a carpeted surface onto a tile surface encounter different resistance, causing them to be more likely to fall. Per the defendant, plaintiff's expert Melvin Friedlander attempted to testify regarding Wal-Mart's standard of care and was cross-examined with his own failure to know the rainy-day store policies of any of Wal-Mart's competitors, such as Target, K-Mart, or Mervyn's. The two medical experts disagreed with each other regarding whether disc herniation was apparent. When asked by defense counsel to explain the inconsistencies of various clinical findings with his diagnosis of disc herniation, the plaintiff's expert, Dr. Sadler, responded: "Consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds."
Deliberation
38 minutes
Poll
12-0
Length
3 days
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