Ford Motor Co. v. Montana: Specific Jurisdiction and the Serve-and-Sell Rule in Product Liability PI Cases
The Supreme Court's 2021 Ford Motor decisions rejected the manufacturer's argument that specific jurisdiction requires a causal link betwee…
Category
Case Law & Settlements
Appellate decisions, verdicts, and notable settlements from California courts.
Snyder v. Virginia Mason: Washington Presumes Prejudice When Defense Contacts Treating Physicians
The Washington Supreme Court's October 2026 ruling in Snyder v. Virginia Mason establishes that once a Loudon rule violation is found, prej…
Prop 51 at the Margins: Economic and Non-Economic Apportionment After B.B.
Forty years after Proposition 51, the economic/non-economic split still decides how much a single solvent defendant pays. Recent California…
Beyond MICRA: The Procedural Rulings That Decide Med-Mal Cases
The MICRA damages cap gets the attention, but most California med-mal cases live or die on procedure. Here is how CCP 364, the 90-day notic…
Illinois Supreme Court Rejects Uber Arbitration in Wrongful Death Suit
Illinois Supreme Court's September 24 Geller ruling blocks TNC arbitration overreach into wrongful death claims, while Florida's 4th DCA re…
Inside the 3M Earplug Settlement's Point-Value Matrix: Mass Tort Lessons
3M's $6 billion Combat Arms earplug settlement resolved roughly 260,000 military hearing-loss claims through a special-master-administered…
Loper Bright at Two Years: How the Death of Chevron Deference Is Reshaping Regulatory Evidence in PI Cases
The Supreme Court's 2024 decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo ended Chevron deference, and courts are now reviewing challenges…
The Byassee $603M Counterfeit Airbag Verdict: What It Teaches About Defective Replacement Parts Liability
A Broward County jury awarded $603 million against a Chinese airbag inflator manufacturer after a counterfeit replacement part killed a 22-…
Illinois Supreme Court Blocks Rideshare Arbitration in Wrongful Death Ruling
Illinois' top court just kept a wrongful death claim against Uber out of arbitration and in front of a jury, while New York's Second Depart…
Gilead Tenofovir Cases: California Supreme Court Closes the Duty-to-Innovate Door
On August 3, 2026, the California Supreme Court ruled in the Gilead Tenofovir Cases (S283862) that drug manufacturers owe no duty of care w…
Speechio v. Starbucks: How Loose Electrical Wire Becomes Debris Under Labor Law Section 241(6)
The First Department's April 2026 decision in Speechio v. Starbucks Corp. clarifies when discarded materials on a construction site constit…
Beauchamp v. NYCTA: What the First Department's $47.8M Reduction Teaches About Building a Damages Record
The First Department upheld $47.8 million for a catastrophically injured pedestrian but cut the jury's $72.5 million award significantly. T…