The Largest Personal Injury Verdicts and Settlements in Recent Texas History
October 8, 2024
Texas juries have shown a willingness to award large verdicts when the facts of a case reveal that a person or company who hurt someone showed egregious or callous disregard for the safety of others. Here we compiled some of the most notable personal injury jury verdicts in recent Texas history.
1. Estate of Kindred v. Delbosque, $301,040,000,000.00
This case involved a 2017 drunk driving accident in Corpus Christi, Texas. The defendant driver ran a red light and hit a grandmother and her granddaughter, killing all three persons involved in the accident. A subsequent investigation found that the driver had a blood alcohol level of .263 at the time of the crash and had imbibed no less than 11 drinks at the Beer Belly’s Sports Bar before getting on the road. The Nueces County jury awarded more than $300 billion to the family of the decedent grandmother and granddaughter.
2. Robbie Middleton, $150,000,000,000.00
The case of Robbie Middleton concerned the horrific burning and death of an 8-year-old child at the hands of 13-year-old Don Wilbur Collins. On Middleton’s 8th birthday, Collins tied Middle to a tree, doused him in gasoline, and set him on fire. As a result, Middleton suffered third degree burns on 99% of his body and endured 150 operations before dying at the age of 20 from skin cancer, which was thought to be related to his burns. On Middleton’s death bed, he revealed in a 27-minute video that Collins had perpetrated the attack because he had sexually assaulted Middleton just weeks prior, and Collins wanted to murder him to keep the assault a secret. A jury in Fayette County Texas awarded Middleton’s family more than $150 billion in damages.
3. Estate of Thomas v. Holden Jr., et al., $7,375,000,000.00
This case, which went to trial in 2022, arose out of the death of 83-year-old Betty Thomas. An employee of Charter Spectrum robbed and stabbed Ms. Thomas to death at her home. At trial, the facts showed that Charter Spectrum ignored numerous warning signs about the employee, and that after the murder Charter Spectrum attempted to forge a service agreement. The forged document would have purportedly forced the family of Ms. Thomas to arbitrate the case, severely curtailing the recoverable damages. Because the jury found that Charter Spectrum committed felony forgery, the punitive damages cap that ordinarily applies under Texas law was lifted.
4. Andrews, et al. v. DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., et al., $1,041,361,648.00
This case involved allegations that the medical device giant DePuy Orthopaedics defectively designed and marketed a Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip implant. The plaintiffs alleged that the faulty design of the implant caused them to suffer complications requiring revision surgery. The case was one of the first “bellwether” trials in a multi-district litigation panel based out of Dallas. The jury concluded that DePuy officials knew the devices were defective but failed to properly warn doctors and patients about the risk they were likely to fail, and awarded several of the plaintiffs collectively more than $1 billion in damages.
5. Williams, et al. v. Bigge Crane & Rigging, Co., et al., $860,012,006.00
This Dallas County case involved the collapse of a tower crane onto an occupied apartment building below. 29-year-old Kiersten Smith was sitting on her couch in her apartment in Old East Dallas when the crane came crashing through her apartment at the Elan City Lights complex, killing her in the process. At trial, the jury heard evidence that the crane had been allowed to fall out of inspection and that the company involved in the nearby construction site where the crane was positioned had failed to adequately supervise the crane operator.
6. Ramsey, et al. v. Landstar Ranger, Inc., et al., $730,000,000
This 2021 verdict, rendered by a Titus County jury, is likely one of the largest trucking verdicts in the state of Texas. The plaintiff, a 73-year-old East Texas woman named Toni Combest, was driving to church when she was hit and killed by a 200,000 pound “Super Load” escorted by front and back pilot escort vehicles. The jury awarded more than $730 million to the family of the decedent after a week-long trial against the employer of one of the escort vehicles.
7. Johnson v. Union Pacific Railroad Co., $557,000,000
A Harris County jury rendered this 2023 verdict in a case involving a collision between a Union Pacific locomotive and a pedestrian sitting on the train tracks. Following the collision the Plaintiff suffered a traumatic brain injury and required amputation of her leg. The Plaintiff alleged that the Union Pacific train could have stopped before hitting her and also failed to comply with regulations that required its headlamps to adequately illuminate the track in front of it.
8. Cruz v. Allied Aviation Fueling Co. of Houston Inc., et al., $352,000,000
Plaintiff Ulysses Cruz, a former United Airlines employee, brought suit against Allied Aviation in a case that was tried to verdict in 2021. Cruz alleged one of Allied’s van drivers hit him while he was working as a “wing walker” at George W. Bush Intercontinental Airport. The driver claimed that the sun was in his eyes, causing him to collide with Cruz. As a result of the accident Cruz was paralyzed from the chest down. The jury found in Cruz’ favor and awarded $352 million in damages.
9. Aguilar v. Heckmann Water Resources (CVR) Inc, $281,000,000
This 2014 case involved the death of Carlos Aguilar. Mr. Aguilar’s family alleged that a drive shaft assembly detached from the Defendant’s 18-wheeler rig and crashed through Mr. Aguilar’s windshield, killing him on impact. The Dimmit County jury awarded $281 million in damages to the surviving family.
10. Reavis v. Toyota Motor Corp., et al., $242,000,000
In this 2018 jury trial, a Dallas County jury awarded $242 million to the Reavis family. Ben and Kristi Reavis were traveling on Central Expressway in Dallas with their 5-year-old and 3-year-old children riding in the backseat of their Lexus ES300. Another driver rear-ended the family at approximately 45-48 miles per hour. The Reavis family brought suit against Toyota, alleging Toyota defectively designed the front seats, seatbacks, and occupant restraint systems of their Lexus. As a result, the adult passengers’ seats slid into the backseat during the collision and slammed into their children’s heads. The impact resulted in both minor children experiencing traumatic brain injuries.
