Even when injuries are catastrophic, jurors can be reluctant to hand down a large award for pain and suffering. But at trial against two Florida bars over the devastating brain damage a teenager suffered in a late-night crash, Mark Avera’s vivid closing conveys the enormity of the crash victim's loss and sets up a massive verdict.

Before unprecedented court closures halted the docket of Florida’s Engle progeny tobacco cases, the first three months of 2020 saw several high-profile verdicts that have added to the decade-plus history of the litigation.  CVN looks at the top defense verdict of the first quarter of 2020, delivered by the attorney that earned last year’s Engle defense title. 

Gary Paige delivers closings that set up the biggest Engle tobacco verdict of the first quarter of 2020. See below for video featuring James Gustafson.

Court closures have paused Florida’s decade-plus-long, Engle-progeny tobacco litigation. However, before courts shut down, the first three months of 2020 had already produced a slate of headline-grabbing verdicts in the cases, spun from a massive class action suit against the nation’s tobacco companies. CVN looks at the top verdicts we’ve covered so far this year.

At trial against R.J. Reynolds over a Florida’s smoker’s death, Emily Baker’s strong closing on responsibility led the jury to hand down a rare $0 damages verdict, despite linking Reynolds and its cigarettes to his fatal cancer. 

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Miami, FL—Trial against Philip Morris over the lung cancer death of a Florida woman has been suspended until the end of the month, part of coronavirus fallout that has disrupted courts across the country. Lipp v. Philip Morris, 2017-CA-018509.