Premises Liability Verdict News

$644 Million Florida Premises Liability Verdict After Man Left Paralyzed at Winter Park Bar

An Orange County jury delivered one of the largest premises liability verdicts in Florida history this week, awarding $644,751,855.08 to a man who fell down a dangerous staircase at a Winter Park bar in 2017 and was left partially quadriplegic. The verdict, returned against the owners of Park Social, a second-floor bar in Winter Park, sends a forceful message about property owner accountability when unsafe conditions go unaddressed.What Happened at Park Social In November 2017, a 57-year-old man was leaving Park Social, a bar located on the second story of a building constructed in 1926 in Winter Park, Florida. To exit, he had to descend a flight of approximately 20 stairs. He fell. The injuries were catastrophic. According to Morgan & Morgan, the law firm that represented him, the man sustained multiple fractures to his neck and skull. He now has no feeling from the chest down and essentially no movement in his arms, legs, or torso. He also permanently lost his senses of taste and smell. He will never work again.The Staircase: What the Jury Heard At trial, attorneys for the plaintiff focused the jury's attention squarely on the physical conditions of the staircase itself. According to Morgan & Morgan's post-verdict release, the evidence showed the stairs were too narrow, too steep, and lacked grip tape on the treads. The handrails, attorneys argued, were inadequate for a stairway that served as the bar's only exit. The bar was operating inside a building nearly 100 years old at the time of the incident. The condition of the staircase, plaintiff's counsel argued, reflected a deliberate prioritization of convenience over patron safety. Morgan & Morgan attorney Brian McClain, who handled the case out of the firm's Orlando office, spoke to the full scope of what the plaintiff lost: "Our client's injuries altered his life completely and permanently. He didn't just lose his mobility, but also his identity. This was a man that lived for the simple joys of gardening and cooking, passions that were ripped away from him the moment he stepped on those stairs."How the $644 Million Verdict Breaks Down The Orange County jury's award was itemized across four categories: $166 million for past pain and suffering $363 million for future pain and suffering $109.5 million awarded to the plaintiff's wife for loss of consortium and services $6,251,855 for medical expenses and lost earnings The defendants, Soho WP and BE-1 Concept Holdings, which owned and operated Park Social at the time of the incident, bore the full weight of the verdict. The nearly $640 million allocated to pain and suffering, both past and future, reflects what the jury concluded about the permanent, total, and life-altering nature of the plaintiff's condition. Loss of consortium claims, which compensate a spouse for the loss of companionship and partnership, are sometimes treated as secondary in verdict coverage, but the $109.5 million awarded to the plaintiff's wife underscores how thoroughly this injury dismantled an entire family's life.Morgan and Morgan's Personal Connection to the Case Morgan & Morgan founder John Morgan issued a statement after the verdict that went beyond the legal outcome. "My brother, Tim, lived his life as a quadriplegic after a tragic accident, so I have seen firsthand how an injury like this drastically and permanently changes a person's and their family's lives," Morgan said. The statement reflects something that often gets lost in large-verdict coverage: behind every catastrophic injury case is a real person whose life was subdivided into before and after by a single moment.Why This Verdict Matters Beyond Florida Florida premises liability law holds property owners and operators responsible for maintaining reasonably safe conditions for guests and patrons. When a commercial establishment opens its doors to paying customers, particularly in a space that requires navigating a staircase, the duty to maintain safe egress is not optional. This verdict will be studied. A staircase that is too narrow, too steep, and missing basic safety features like grip tape and adequate handrails is not an obscure hazard. It is a documented, preventable condition. The jury's willingness to hold the bar's ownership accountable for the full scope of the plaintiff's lifetime losses, including future pain and suffering projected across decades of paralysis, reflects how seriously Florida juries can treat premises liability failures when the evidence is clear. For plaintiff attorneys tracking verdict trends in premises liability and Florida personal injury cases, this outcome is a significant data point. Major Verdict tracks significant plaintiff verdicts and settlements across all 50 states. Browse the latest results or find a plaintiff attorney with a proven trial record in your state. If you are a plaintiff attorney with trial results worth showcasing, create your free profile on Major Verdict and let your record speak for itself.

$2.7M Federal Jury Verdict Against Target Corp in Colorado Premises Liability Case

A federal jury in Denver awarded $2,698,550 to a customer who tripped over a fallen curbside pickup sign at a Littleton, Colorado Target store a hazard that evidence showed the retail giant knew about for months and failed to fix. The verdict, returned on November 21, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado (Case No. 1:23-cv-02828-DDD-STV), found Target Corp 100% responsible for the plaintiff's injuries. The judgment became final after Target Corp did not appeal by the February 19, 2026 deadline.What Happened at Target Store #1776 in Littleton The incident occurred on October 9, 2021, at Target Store #1776, located at 9390 W. Cross Drive in Littleton, Colorado. A temporary curbside pickup sign had blown over earlier that day. Evidence presented at trial showed the sign was visually camouflaged against the surrounding pavement which had been painted in Target's own branding colors making it difficult to see underfoot. That design detail mattered. So did what happened after the sign fell.Target Knew the Signs Were a Problem and Did Nothing The jury heard evidence that Target Corp had been aware for months that these curbside pickup signs were falling over prior to this incident. Video evidence presented at trial showed that multiple Target employees walked near the fallen sign before the customer was hurt. Despite those opportunities, no one removed it, marked it, or cordoned off the area. The plaintiff subsequently tripped over the sign and fell. The jury's finding of 100% liability against Target reflects the conclusion that this was not a sudden, unforeseeable accident. The hazard was known. The risk was documented. And nothing was done.Severe and Permanent Injuries The fall caused the plaintiff to suffer severe nerve damage to the right arm and hand. Medical testimony established that the injuries resulted in permanent impairment and chronic pain, with lasting functional limitations affecting daily life. The jury's award of $2,698,550 covers medical expenses, pain and suffering, and the long-term consequences of those permanent injuries.The Legal Team The plaintiff was represented by Vernon L. Ready of Ready Law, a Colorado personal injury firm based in Denver. The verdict places this case among the more significant premises liability outcomes in the Denver metropolitan area in recent years, according to the press release issued by Ready Law.What This Verdict Means for Retail Premises Liability Cases This case carries meaningful signals for plaintiff attorneys handling retail injury claims in Colorado. The combination of documented prior notice, identifiable corporate branding contributing to the hazard, and video evidence of employees passing the danger point created a strong liability picture. The jury's 100% fault allocation against a major national retailer in federal court underscores that corporations cannot escape responsibility for known, unaddressed hazards simply because the setting is a routine retail environment. For attorneys tracking premises liability verdicts in Colorado, cases like this one illustrate what a well-developed "notice plus failure to act" theory can produce at trial. Plaintiff attorneys can explore Colorado verdict data and connect with experienced trial lawyers at Major Verdict.Find a Colorado Personal Injury Lawyer If you or someone you know has been injured on another person's or business's property in Colorado, you have the right to seek compensation. Colorado's Premises Liability Act imposes specific duties on property owners and occupiers to protect lawful visitors from known hazards. This verdict shows what can happen when those duties are ignored. To find a plaintiff personal injury attorney with a proven trial record in Colorado, visit the Major Verdict member directory a public resource connecting injured people with experienced lawyers across all 50 states. You can also explore Colorado personal injury public resources for more context on how cases like this are handled in your state. Attorneys: if you try cases like this and want your results in front of the public and your peers, join Major Verdict the only platform where plaintiff lawyers publicly display detailed trial outcomes.

LA Jury Returns $3 Million to Man Over Broken Sidewalk in City's Latest Liability Payout

A jury returned $3,000,000 in a civil injury case. The trial date reported was August 13, 2025. LA panel grants $3 million to man over broken sidewalk in city’s latest liability payout - ABC7 Los Angeles 24/7 Live Los Angeles Orange County Inland Empire Ventura County California ABC7 On Your Side panel grants $3 million to man who tripped on LA sidewalk that's been broken for years By Kevin Ozebek Wednesday, August 13, 2025 LOS ANGELES (KABC) - A panel has granted a wedding photographer $3 million after he was injured when he tripped over a damaged sidewalk in Woodland Hills in 2019. Last week, a panel made Payman Heravi $3 million richer. While Heravi started to cry as the panel’s decision was read, they didn’t appear to be tears of joy. Payman says his left arm isn’t fully functional - all because of a severely uneven L.A. city sidewalk. Right now, (the) pain is a lot, Heravi said. Right now, I can’t use my shoulder. In December 2019, Heravi says he was walking down Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills and as he checked a text on his phone, he tripped on a several-inch uplift in the sidewalk. Heravi’s attorneys successfully argued that city employees saw the sidewalk was damaged, but didn’t repair it. That should be fixed in a reasonable manner, Heravi’s personal inpanel attorney Max Lee said. If that happened in this case, Mr. Heravi would still be able to do what he loves and not be in constant pain every day. Three surgeries and years of physical therapy later, Heravi says he still cannot return to making a living as a wedding photographer. The panel granted Heravi a total of $3,028,026. As for the sidewalk, it still has not been fixed. In roughly the past five years, the city of Los Angeles has paid out more than $86 million because of lawsuits relating to broken and uneven sidewalks.