Shades of the McDonalds Coffee Case In a case which is reminiscent of the famous McDonalds coffee case in which a New Mexico woman was awarded close to $3 million, mostly in punitive damages, for a burn caused by excessively hot coffee, a Georgia jury has awarded $1.2 million to a woman who was scalded by 190-degree water which shot out of a cappuccino machine in a convenience store. I cannot help but point out here that the award in the New Mexico case, which has been cited far and wide as a case of excessive jury action in a frivolous lawsuit, was for only $200,000, which was reduced to $160,000 because the plaintiff was found to be partly responsible for the spill. The remainder of the award was for punitive damages which equaled only the value of two days of coffee sales at McDonalds which was shown to have persisted in serving dangerously hot coffee in spite of being warned on numerous previous occasions. In the Georgia case the plaintiff was burned on her hand and arm as she held her cup near the machine resulting in a burn injury which will require an electronic implant to correct nerve damage. Defective products pose an array of hidden dangers all around us. Every month dozens of products are recalled because they pose a danger of injury. Lowry & Associates stands ready to help victims who are injured by product defects.
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