This myth can't be further from the truth! Some people believe this because of news reports about the occasional "runaway jury" which gives what appears to be an unreasonably high jury award.Take for instance the McDonalds' coffee case of 1994. McDonalds knowingly sold extremely hot coffee to make larger profits because company experts had suggested that hotter coffee tastes and sells better. After one unsuspecting woman received third-degree burns from spilt coffee in a drive-thru, a jury awarded her substantial money as punishment for McDonalds' decision to put its profits over the safety of its customers. The jury was absolutely incensed that McDonalds knew a certain number of its customers would be burned each year, but decided to sell the hotter coffee anyway so it could increase the number of coffee cups sold each day. The jury based its award on the daily profit McDonalds received from coffee.
For a couple of years after that famous case, I would try to convince prospective jurors in my trials of the justification for the jury's award in the McDonald's case. However, I soon realized I was facing an uphill battle trying to defend the California jurors' rationale for that high jury award. Through the publicity generated by that one so-called "runaway jury," the American public was absolutely convinced that our jury system was broken and that juries awarded too much money.Furthermore, the tort reform efforts here in Texas have been very successful in not only enacting laws which restrict jury awards, but also in making Texans think we have a problem with excessive jury awards.
While I admit that there are random incidences of large jury verdicts that don't appear to be in line with the associated damages, those are very rare instances. Instead, Texas juries are in large part very conservative when awarding money. Because of that, it's important to properly document and prepare your case. You cannot give a jury a reason to doubt you or your claimed damages. If you do, you will lose. There's no need to "wreck" your case when you don't have to!
15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case!
One wreck is enough! If someone's carelessness causes you to be seriously injured in a Texas Accident, you must make sure you don't make mistakes that could WRECK your own claim. Any mistakes you make could end up being very costly for you.
15 Mistakes That Will Wreck Your Texas Accident Case!