CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Cody Berne delivering his closing argument in 2023
Portland, OR - The second part of a class action trial to determine damages owed by electric utility PacifiCorp for massive wildfires over the Labor Day holiday in 2020 begins Monday in Oregon state court, and the full proceedings will be webcast gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
A Multnomah County jury already found the utility responsible last June for the fires, agreeing with property owners who suffered damage that the company should have preemptively shut down parts of their power grid ahead of a predicted wind storm.
Berkshire Hathaway-owned PacifiCorp argued shutting down their grid could significantly hinder first responders and emergency facilities like hospitals, but the jury awarded roughly $90 million, including punitive damages, to 17 initial plaintiffs in a trial also webcast by CVN.
The verdict also included a finding in favor of roughly 5,000 additional class members who suffered property damage, and Monday marks the first of a series of “mini-trials” to determine damages for those plaintiffs, which their attorneys claim could potentially total billions of dollars.
Monday's trial will address claims from 9 class members, with a subsequent trial addressing claims from 10 more class members in February. PacifiCorp, meanwhile is appealing the verdict of the initial trial and denies any liability for the fires, maintaining they took appropriate safety measures ahead of the storm.
Following the conclusion of the upcoming third trial, Judge Steffan Alexander, who is presiding over the sprawling litigation, ordered the parties to engage in formal mediation to potentially resolve the claims of all remaining class members based on the outcome of the initial "bellwether" trials. If the parties cannot reach a settlement the damages trials with groups of roughly 10-15 plaintiffs will continue.
Plaintiffs generally face a high bar to certify a class, and a class action then proceeding all the way to a jury trial is relatively rare event. As such both sides will be represented by some of the country’s top law firms.
The plaintiff class is represented by Edelson PC, Keller Rohrback LLP and Stoll Stoll Berne Lokting & Shlachter PC.
PacifiCorp is represented by Stoel Rives LLP and by Hueston Hennigan LLP.
The case is James, et al. v. PacifiCorp., case number 20CV33885 in Multnomah County Circuit Court.
Email David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com