Appeals Court Upholds $1M Jury Award in Wrongful Death Claim

A California appellate court upheld a jury award of $1 million in a wrongful death suit after rejecting defendants' argument that the Privette doctrine shielded them from liability. The court also rejected the plaintiffs' bid for a new trial, saying they failed to prove judicial bias and flawed jury instructions deprived them of a fair hearing. At the same time, the 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected the plaintiffs' argument that they are entitled to a new trial because improper jury instructions and alleged improper gestures by the trial judge resulted in an improper award th...