$644.8M Verdict Against Winter Park Bar Owners Over Dangerous Staircase Fall
Represented by: Morgan & Morgan
An Orange County jury awarded $644,751,855.08 against Soho WP, LLC and BE-1 Concepts Holdings, LLC, the owners and operators of Park Social in Winter Park, Florida, after a patron suffered catastrophic injuries in a fall down the bar’s staircase. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants knowingly directed customers down a dangerous stairway in a second-story bar located in a building constructed in 1926. At trial, his attorneys pointed to several unsafe conditions, including stairs that were too narrow and steep, lacked grip tape, and had inadequate handrails. They also presented evidence that a safer staircase existed on the premises but had been restricted to employees until the day after the plaintiff’s fall.
The plaintiff sustained multiple neck and skull fractures that left him a partial quadriplegic, with no feeling from the chest down, minimal movement in his legs, arms, and torso, and a loss of taste and smell. Former employees testified that management knew patrons had previously fallen on the stairs, supporting the plaintiff’s claim that the dangerous condition was known and preventable. The jury awarded $166 million for past pain and suffering, $363 million for future pain and suffering, $109.5 million to the plaintiff’s wife for loss of consortium and services, and $6,251,855 for medical expenses and lost earnings. The verdict underscores the significant liability businesses can face when evidence shows known safety hazards were left uncorrected despite the availability of safer alternatives.
$603M Verdict Against Chinese Airbag Company Over Fatal Counterfeit Airbag Explosion
Represented by: Morgan & Morgan
A Broward County jury awarded $603 million to the estate and family of Destiny Byassee, a 22-year-old mother of two who was killed after a counterfeit airbag allegedly exploded during a minor crash. The lawsuit was brought against Jilin Province Detiannuo Safety Technology Co., Ltd. (DTN), a Chinese company accused of manufacturing the counterfeit airbag component that had been installed in Byassee’s vehicle after a prior collision. According to the estate, Byassee was unaware that the airbag in her steering wheel had been replaced with an illegal counterfeit part, which failed to deploy properly and sent metal shrapnel through the vehicle.
The plaintiff’s estate alleged that what should have been a survivable collision became fatal when shrapnel from the DTN airbag struck Byassee, causing fatal injuries and leaving her two young children without their mother. Although DTN retained counsel and denied the allegations, it did not attend trial. The jury awarded $243 million in compensatory damages and $360 million in punitive damages. The verdict comes amid heightened scrutiny of DTN airbag inflators, with federal safety officials linking similar illegally imported components to multiple deaths and serious injuries, and underscores the severe liability manufacturers may face when counterfeit safety parts enter the vehicle repair supply chain.
$4.71M Verdict in Orlando Trucking Crash Case
Represented by: Morgan & Morgan
An Orange County jury awarded $4,713,327.31 to a 48-year-old woman who suffered severe spinal injuries after a 2022 crash involving an SDM Transport truck in Orlando, Florida. The plaintiff alleged that she was driving on State Road 408 on December 5, 2022, when the defendant attempted an unsafe lane merge and struck her vehicle. The crash left the plaintiff with spinal injuries that permanently affected her quality of life, and her attorneys argued that the trucking company’s driver was responsible for the collision.
The defense denied liability, attempted to blame the plaintiff, and pointed to her prior medical history in an effort to reduce or avoid responsibility. The jury rejected those arguments, assigning zero percent comparative fault to the plaintiff. Before trial, the plaintiff declined the defense’s highest pretrial offer of $75,000, and the verdict came in more than 60 times that amount. The case highlights the risks trucking defendants face when jurors credit evidence of unsafe driving, reject comparative fault arguments, and find that crash-related spinal injuries caused lasting harm.
$3.97M Verdict Against Publix in Grocery Store Slip-and-Fall Case
Represented by: Rubenstein Law
An Osceola County jury awarded $3,967,000 to Victoria Marcano after finding Publix Super Markets, Inc. fully responsible for injuries she suffered in a June 2023 slip-and-fall at a Kissimmee, Florida store. Marcano alleged that she slipped on a liquid substance in the soft drink or beverage aisle, creating a dangerous condition on the store floor. Evidence at trial showed that Publix employees had previously cleaned liquid in the same area before the fall, while Publix denied liability and disputed the extent and cause of Marcano’s injuries.
Marcano, a young mother, underwent three spinal surgeries after the incident, including one neck surgery and two back surgeries. The jury awarded $411,000 for past medical expenses, $556,000 for future medical expenses, $750,000 for past pain and suffering and related non-economic damages, and $2.25 million for future pain and suffering and related damages. Publix, whose last pretrial settlement offer was reportedly $600,000, later moved for a new trial or reduction of the award, arguing that the court allowed inflated medical damages evidence. The verdict highlights the exposure retailers can face when jurors find that a hazardous condition was known, preventable, and connected to long-term injuries requiring extensive treatment.
$2.75M Settlement in Semi-Truck Crash Case
Represented by: Rubenstein Law
Rubenstein Law secured a $2.75 million settlement for Jennifer Fuentes, a 36-year-old woman who suffered serious injuries after her vehicle was struck by a commercial semi-truck in Tampa, Florida. The crash occurred at the intersection of U.S. Route 41 and Vidor Avenue as Fuentes was turning onto her residential street. According to the case findings, the semi-truck struck her vehicle and caused it to spin into a ditch. The plaintiff alleged that the truck driver was negligent, including by operating the semi-truck at excessive speeds on wet roadways.
Fuentes sustained significant injuries to her neck, back, hip, and head. After conservative treatment failed to resolve her symptoms, she required neck surgery and radiofrequency ablation procedures for ongoing pain. The defense disputed liability, claiming Fuentes had stopped abruptly, and also challenged the severity of her injuries. Despite an initial settlement offer of $770,000, Rubenstein Law partner Jessica Gonzalez-Monge continued pursuing the claim and obtained a recovery more than three times the original offer. The settlement underscores the serious exposure commercial trucking defendants can face when roadway conditions, speed, and crash-related injuries support a negligence claim.
