Court Reiterates $82.6M Award for Woman
Court Alerts
[##_1L|1052813976.jpg|width="120" height="88" alt=""|_##]A California appeals court said a woman who was paralyzed after her Ford Explorer rolled over is entitled to $82.6 million in damages from the automaker. The 4th District Court of Appeal was asked by the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case after Ford Motor Co. appealed the award, arguing that it was being punished even though the design of the vehicle met federal safety standards.
Benetta Buell-Wilson was driving on an interstate east of San Diego in January 2002 when she swerved to avoid a metal object and lost control of her 1997 Explorer, which rolled 4 1/2 times. The mother of two was paralyzed from the waist down when the roof collapsed on her neck, severing her spine.
A jury initially awarded Buell-Wilson $369 million, including $246 million in punitive damages but courts twice cut the size of the award.
The $82.6 million approved by the appeals court Monday includes punitive damages of $55 million.
The Supreme Court wanted the appeals court to determine if its ruling was in line with an earlier Supreme Court decision overturning a $79.5 million punitive damages award in a tobacco case.
Related listings
-
Ga. Court Shooting Trial Resumes in July
Court Alerts 03/11/2008The murder trial of accused courthouse shooter Brian Nichols will resume July 10, a judge decided Monday even as he considered hearing the three-year-old case at another courthouse.The trial was suspended during jury selection in October because of p...
-
Court Officer Guilty Of Taking Cash
Court Alerts 03/08/2008A state court security officer on Friday admitted taking cash payments from bail bondsmen, the latest development in a continuing investigation of the Connecticut bail bond industry.Jill D'Antona, a judicial marshal employed at the Superior Court on ...
-
Investor Pleads Not Guilty in Conspiracy
Court Alerts 03/07/2008[##_1L|1238949188.jpg|width="120" height="88" alt=""|_##]An associate of indicted Rep. Rick Renzi pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges he conspired with the congressman to use his office for financial gain. Real estate investor James W. Sandlin is ...
Grounds for Divorce in Ohio - Sylkatis Law, LLC
A divorce in Ohio is filed when there is typically “fault” by one of the parties and party not at “fault” seeks to end the marriage. A court in Ohio may grant a divorce for the following reasons:
• Willful absence of the adverse party for one year
• Adultery
• Extreme cruelty
• Fraudulent contract
• Any gross neglect of duty
• Habitual drunkenness
• Imprisonment in a correctional institution at the time of filing the complaint
• Procurement of a divorce outside this state by the other party
Additionally, there are two “no-fault” basis for which a court may grant a divorce:
• When the parties have, without interruption for one year, lived separate and apart without cohabitation
• Incompatibility, unless denied by either party
However, whether or not the the court grants the divorce for “fault” or not, in Ohio the party not at “fault” will not get a bigger slice of the marital property.