Case Analysis on a $3,500,000 Premises/Negligence Verdict

Anthony Liberatore

TLU New York City | September 20th - 23rd

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This could be the craziest set of premises liability – proprietor negligence facts ever to see a courtroom.  A lady, Izumi Maki,  is invited to a designer dress sale.  Her purse gets locked inside a “dressing room.”  Izumi climbs an A-frame ladder to scale a 14-foot wall to get inside the locked room.  She falls and crushes her left heel.

At the time of the fall, Izumi was 57.   Surgery was recommended within the first four months of injury.  Izumi never had surgery.  The case was tried five years later when she was 62.  Best pre-trial offer was $30,001 (CCP Section 998).  The offer was increased to $75,000 at the close of evidence while a motion for non-suit was pending.  At trial, the defense asked the Jury to award $27,500.

Teaching Points:

• The approach used to neutralize the defense’s best facts
• Presenting a narrative based on what Anthony calls the “immutables”
• Effective use of focus groups, mini-opening, and voir dire
• Developing damages when there are zero specials (no medical bills and no lost earnings)
• Tailoring closing and how to use rebuttal (final close) to judo-chop the defense and re-arm your favorable jurors