The Washington State Court of Appeals recently upheld a $150 million verdict in favor of the victims of the 2019 crane collapse in Seattle’s South Lake Union, including our clients, the Justad family.
The appellate decision came after mobile crane operator Omega Morgan Sarens appealed the 2022 jury verdict that held them, among other companies involved, liable for the deadly collapse that killed 71-year-old city planner Alan Justad and three other people, and injuring five.
After considering Omega’s appeal, the court upheld the verdict, affirming that the original trial proceedings were sound.
According to David Beninger and Patricia Anderson, who led the Luvera Law Firm team involved in the case, Omega’s appeal was the latest step in ongoing efforts to avoid accountability.
“While other companies involved took meaningful action to improve their safety practices, Omega repeatedly tried to dodge responsibility for their role in this tragedy,” Beninger said. “The company blamed others and forced the case to trial, and then pushed back on the jury verdict, too. We’re grateful for the state appeals court’s careful consideration and decision to uphold the trial.”
Read more about Luvera Law Firm’s advocacy in this case and additional media coverage here.
