The verdict is in. $5 million.
It now moves to the punitive damages phase.
Congrats to Bob Eglet and Will Kemp!
***UPDATE***
According to the RJ, Bob Eglet asked the jury for $1 Billion in punitive damages on Thursday.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Hep C Verdict: $5 Million
This is all over the Breaking News links.
The verdict is in. $5 million.
It now moves to the punitive damages phase.
Congrats to Bob Eglet and Will Kemp!
The verdict is in. $5 million.
It now moves to the punitive damages phase.
Congrats to Bob Eglet and Will Kemp!
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52 comments:
There is going to be some pretty happy Plaintiff attorneys celebrating ol' cinco tonight!
$5 million despite Mr. Kemp.
Let me get this straight - if an insurance company provides me with a retainer for $500k for settling a case that the opposing counsel won't settle immediately, and I deposit those funds into my IOLTA until the case can be settled, and I then violate my code of ethics to use $100k of that to gamble with at a casino, it is the insurance company's fault because it should have known that having that much money in my trust account for an attorney so close to the Strip that it would entice me to commit an act in violation of my ethical responsibilities that I must follow to retain my law license?
Wow. How far did the jury have to go to pull that out of their a$$?
Croc o' Shit.
Well played MEC, well played indeed.
PI attorney in shock here... That was the most hare-brained theory, but I guess it had traction when it came to story time.
I wouldn't be celebrating, the appeal is obvious.
This "you wholesale this product in amounts too large for a single use" theory is going to be interesting to test on other products. Don't they sell Snickers chocolate bars in 96-unit packs at Costco...?
Dear 5:09, Don't those Snickers come individually wrapped?
There is only one way, apparently, to stop Eglet and Vannah. We need to get the US Attorneys office to prosecute them for something. How about their advocacy is some kind of a criminal violation? Can someone come up with a theory? That one about Howard Awand didn't do too well. Besides, Awand's been gone 5 years and they are still kicking our rear ends. They really can't be that good. They must be doing something dishonest. What is it?
What is up with Eglets hair??
The DA of Nye county gets arrested and dragged to the sheriff's office and it doesn't merit a mention here? Fumble, guys.
Great job, Eggy! U da Man.
you also forgot to mention that GT lost its BK department.
God...good luck on appeal. Here's looking forward to the NSC reversing this one based on the learned intermediary doctrine. Defense attorneys take notice that something smells in the State of Nevada...too bad it takes an investigative report by the LA Times to figure out what.
Now they are going to have to quit putting water in 5 gallon containers because if you drink all of it at one time it could kill you and then the water company will be held liable.
8:13 If you look at GT's webpage, it's clear the BK team is gone, but where did they go? Isn't this the team that was raided from LR only 12-18 months ago?
5:01 p.m....$500k in a trust acct...very fitting given that this is one of the only actions (maybe other than murder) that'll get an atty disbarred in this state.
By the way, anyone have a new post-fix for the old compound word jurisprudence, Nevada is in need of a new one.
I'm going to drink a fifth of Jack Daniel's and run my car into Plaintiff Attorneys. Then I'll sue the makers of Jack Daniel's for selling whiskey by the fifth and tempting me to drink the entire bottle.
Win Win
I am continually amazed at the professional jealousy that is rampant by posters on WWL. I have never begrudged another attorney for their successes, even when their success has come at my defeat. We now have "lawyers" on this board who are essentially attacking the jury system. Why don't all of you insurance defense hacks a/k/a tort reformers move to Texas and ask the defense bar what happened in the aftermath of tort reform? I don't have a dog in this fight, and while it is true that the Supremes might overturn on an appeal, I say congrats to anyone who obtains a 7 figure verdict for their client. The rest of you insurance defense hacks, crawl under a rock and be miserable. I am sorry that your life sucks and you hate what you do everyday. No, on second thought, I am not sorry, since you chose that path.
@ 7:42
What happened to your idea of professional ethics? I know Plaintiffs attorneys become slimey-er and slimey-er the longer they practice, but the theory of this case was incredibly stupid. No one is jealous about Eglet's victory. If anything, it's very impressive and demonstrates that if you needed an attorney to advocate for your personal injuries, he's the guy.
But this case should have never made it to trial because the law doesn't support the underlying tort. That is the source of the outrage, coupled with the weak judge overseeing the case.
I am an "insurance defense hack", and have been for more years than many posters on WWL have been out of elementary school. The fact is that Kemp and MEC outclassed the defense at every critical juncture in the trial. No, I was not in the courtroom, but anyone who is not an asshat knows that you don't get a verdict, ANY verdict, without controlling the critical junctures in the trial.
Kudos to MEC and Kemp. They obviously presented a fine case to the jury, and got a verdict for their clients. There is no evidence that anything unethical occurred; just evidence of good lawyering.
Of course the case will be appealed, and the NSC may or may reverse. That's part of the game too, so stay tuned.
Why is there so much sniveling on this board about lawyers who succeed in representing their clients' interests? Isn't that what the practice of law is all about? I think that that the snivelers are missing someth9ing here.
@ 8:24
"the law doesn't support the underlying tort" -- spoken like a true insurance defense hack. I smile every time I recall a defense attorney speaking those words, and then after lengthy unsuccessful motion practice the case either settles or it goes to trial, at which my client receives a great verdict and the defendant either pays or appeals and the case is ultimately upheld on appeal and defendant then pays.
The holier-than-thou attitude of defense hacks is laughable. Apparently if defense hacks call plaintiff's attorneys slimy, they can then blame what is actually poor lawyering on the plaintiff's attorney. I could write a book detailing every time a defense hack has blatantly lied or misrepresented facts, and law, to the court. It would be considerably longer than War and Peace.
My $.02 on whether the Supremes will uphold the verdict is worth no more than your opinion, but IMHO I predict the theory will be upheld on appeal.
Five million? That's not that much, really.
@ 8:33
Well stated.
As to the snivelers, it is apparent that the only way they can make themselves feel better is to criticize others or blame their shortcomings on the actions of others. They believe that the only way they can build themselves up is tear other people down.
I have mixed feelings about this one. First congrats to the plaintiffs on the verdict. But I wonder would this have gotten to trial in front of a different judge? Also, the plaintiff is clearly a sympathetic party (I don't mean that in a bad sense) How many those jurors were trying to find a way to get him $$ How many of those jurors would have awarded millions against the DR's had they not paid their 350k and ran away? How many of them voted for KODIN and believe in tort reform? Classic case of good facts making bad law.
Did anyone see the closing arguments? How many times did Eglet say something Lioce tells you you're not supposed to say?
Wasn't the plaintiff asking for something like $8m+?
So technically, a verdict of $5m ($3m for victim and $2m for spouse) is actually coming up a little short.
@9:07,
That's a classic (and effective) Eglet tactic. He asks for way more money than he thinks the case is worth, and then the jury "punishes" him by giving him half of what he asked for (and still double what the case would be worth if tried by 90% of the other attorneys in town). It works very very well for him.
I can't comment on the merits of this case, because I didn't review the two weeks worth of evidence. Let's be honest the majority of these posts are people that are jealous.
Eglet's quite a prick but he's a very good attorney. He's the type of attorney that creates many of your jobs because he's not afraid to litigate. So before you're too critical, ask yourself what you'll do for work after you "fix" the system.
When you spend your entire existence cheating widows and orphans out of their due, it warps your sense of decency and propriety. How can it not?
For the folks who are saying $5MM isn't enough, remember, we haven't gotten into the puni's yet.
And for everyone who says $5M is not enough, how many times have you obtained a 7 figure verdict for a client?
I'm with 8:52. Congrats to the plaintiff crew. But the case should never have made to the jury. We can thank the genius judge for her continued support of her meal tickets.
It's Judge Walsh. Is anyone on the defense side really surprised?
This result is absurd. Clark County is officially a judicial hellhole. These defenants should have won on summary judgment.
This is a product that is available only to a licensed professional, who overrides 25 YEARS of established medical protocol and, in that indepenant, intervening act, creates the damages suffered by the plaintiff and yet - Walsh: prosectutor of parking tickets - allows this to proceed to a jury of mouth breathers who populate this shithole valley.
Let's vote ourselves rich (like the $200K firefighters) and live happily ever after.
Nope.
Why didn't the defense strike Walsh? The only time I want a plaintiff whore judge is if I'm the plaintiff.
Wow 10:43, tell us how you really feel. And it's hard to take you seriously in your rant against "mouth breathers" when you use words such as defenants and prosectutor. For such an accomplished legal theorist one would think spell check would be more liberally used.
From April 13th post:
Anonymous said...
No duty, no nexus, no $$$.
April 13, 2010 4:05 PM
Anonymous said...
@4:05. I don't care how many times you had to repeat your law school classes. You fail to appreciate the situation. Clark County jury, dumb ass judge, and best plaintiff's firm in town.
April 13, 2010 5:21 PM
From: http://wildwildlaw.blogspot.com/2010/04/endoscopy-suit-becomes-about-buying-in.html
To anyone with confidence in the NSC on a product liability case, I suggest you read Allison v. Merck (1994) 110 Nev. 762; 878 P.2d 948
I'm a defense lawyer (and not one of the posters above). Eglet and Kemp are skilled attorneys. We may not like them, but they are good at what they do and dangerous to their opponents. Yes, the trial judge was weak, and yes the legal theory is weak in a law review sort of way, but that's not what the District and Supreme Court get - they get evidence and maybe this won't get reversed when they look at it on the record presented.
This case was won in motion in limine stage when the Plaintiffs won their motion to exclude evidence of superceding or intervening cause.
I think that this trial proves that Eglet is much more than just a personal injury attorney. I think defense attorneys who are critical of him have no idea that Eglet was a defense attorney and partner at Beckley Singleton for many years before switching over to plaintiff's work. This trial proves that Eglet is more than a match for "Big Law" as he beat Vault 100 Mark Tully from Goodwin Procter.
I think it's fair to say that no one on here doubts Eglet's talent. He is definitely an attorneys' attorney.
For what it's worth, I don't the think verdict or the theory of law is all that far fetched. It's my understanding that there were nearly 150 known hep c cases related to the misuse of these vials BEFORE the break out in Las Vegas. For all of the naysayers, let me ask... how many cases of hep c did the defendants need to have under their belt before they realized the foreseeable misuse?
That being said, I do not see this as a punitive damages case. Then again, I haven't heard all of the evidence. It just doesn't seem to rise to the level of actual or implied malice... although, arguable, the jury may have found a conscious disregard when the defendants failed to act after over 100 prior hep c cases.
Eglet has apparently asked for $1 Billion in punitives: http://www.lvrj.com/news/-1-billion-sought-in-hepatitis-c-case-93012179.html
Maybe this more of the Eglet stategy that 9:12 posted about.
Hey snivelers,
were any of you present at the trial. First, the theory was not only that the vials were too large for the clinics, there was a very strong failure to warn claim. In fact, the jury did not find that the vials were too large and therefore unreasonably dangerous. But they did find that the drug companies failed to warn. Second, Eglet and Kemp DID outclass and outsmart the defense at every turn.
They played it right and the law was on their side for failure to warn
If only those doctors and nurses had been warned that reusing needles is a bad thing none of this would have happened. It would have been as simple as:
WARNING: Hey retard who went to medical school. If you are too effing stupid to realize that reusing needles is bad, please put this vial down and inject Drano into your eye, with a used needle.
Did I miss something? or don't we have a cap of 900k in puni's in this case?
7:51 AM - don't forget that the label should also be in writeen Spanish and Tagalog.
8:12 am - you missed something. In strict product liability the "cap" or 1:3 ratio doesn't apply
@ 8:12
Why would you think there's a cap of $900k? Even if the 42.005 cap applied in products cases (which it does not), it would be 3x the compensatory damages of $5 million, for a total of $15 million.
Eglet's theory is that you have to ask for millions upfront to get over the shock value of the amount, and then get the jury start saying it comfortably. Apparently, he jumped into the Austin Powers time machine and is now in the billions. How long until he starts asking for a $100 Billion (pinky to mouth style)?
According to the RJ, the jury just awarded Chanin $500 million in punitives.
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