$56M Slow Cooker Burn Verdict Slashed to $8.8M Under Colorado Law

Georgina Perez suffered second- and third-degree burns when her slow cooker exploded during use, prompting her to file suit against the manufacturer and its parent company. According to court filings, Perez had completed cooking beans and was attempting to open the steam release valve roughly 20 minutes after cooking ended. At that moment, the cooker “violently exploded,” causing serious thermal injuries.

Perez later filed an amended complaint in 2023, alleging that the product was dangerously defective despite having a redesigned lid. The lawsuit named Sunbeam Products Inc. and Newell Brands Inc. as defendants, asserting claims of design defect, failure to warn, and negligence. Despite the updated lid design included in the model she used, Perez’s attorneys argued the device was still capable of pressurizing while misaligned—a failure that directly contributed to the explosion.

The Jury’s Original Award

In December, a Colorado jury found both Sunbeam and Newell liable and concluded that they were legal manufacturers of the defective slow cooker. The jury awarded Perez $3.5 million for noneconomic damages, $2 million for physical impairment, $15 million in punitive damages against Sunbeam, and $35 million in punitive damages against Newell Brands—bringing the total to nearly $56 million.

The jury apportioned fault among the parties as follows: Sunbeam was found 27% responsible, Newell 63%, and Perez herself 10%. Under Colorado law, the verdict was subject to reduction due to Perez’s partial liability.

Why the Verdict Was Reduced

In a ruling issued on May 30, U.S. District Chief Judge Philip A. Brimmer significantly reduced the verdict based on Colorado’s statutory caps for noneconomic and exemplary damages. While he acknowledged that Sunbeam and Newell failed to demonstrate Perez was ineligible for any exemplary damages, he ruled that Perez also had not established grounds for tripling punitive damages or waiving the caps entirely.

Under Colorado law, noneconomic damages are capped at $250,000 per defendant, or $468,010 after inflation adjustments. Perez argued her injuries warranted doubling the cap to $936,030 per defendant. However, Judge Brimmer rejected this, finding that while Perez’s injuries were painful and serious, they were not “profound, severe and life-altering.” The judge noted that Perez had returned to work, no longer experiences pain from her injuries, and is able to go outdoors regularly, albeit with some precautions.

He also applied Colorado’s cap on exemplary damages, which limits punitive damages to no more than the amount of actual damages. Perez had sought to triple those damages, but Judge Brimmer found she failed to demonstrate ongoing or particularly egregious misconduct by the defendants following her 2021 complaint.

The Final Judgment

Judge Brimmer recalculated the award based on the applicable statutory caps and the jury’s fault allocation. He awarded Perez $1.67 million in actual damages and an equivalent amount in punitive damages from Sunbeam. From Newell, he awarded $2.87 million in actual damages and an equal amount in punitive damages. The total revised award amounted to $8.8 million.

The court rejected Perez’s additional arguments that the companies continued misconduct after the recall or violated regulatory agreements. Judge Brimmer found that her evidence—including a 2020 recall notice and a spreadsheet of injuries that ended in 2018—did not substantiate claims that the companies continued to sell defective products after her injury. He also found no merit in her contention that the companies had failed to revise user manuals or violated a 2016 Consumer Product Safety Commission settlement.

What’s Next?

Perez’s legal team has not commented publicly on the reduced award. Likewise, representatives for Sunbeam and Newell did not immediately respond to requests for comment. While the ruling limits her recovery, the court’s findings may still be influential in similar product liability cases involving allegedly defective consumer appliances.

The Law Firms Involved

Perez is represented by Hannah Huston, Michael Burg, Holly Kammerer, and Shane Fulton of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine PC.

Sunbeam and Newell are represented by David O'Connell of Goldberg Segalla LLP and Conor Boyle of Hall & Evans LLC.

Case Information: Perez v. Sunbeam et al., Case No. 1:21-cv-01915, U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.