Cordes v. Smart & Final, LLC

This case involved a Plaintiff, Genoveva Cordes, who alleged that while she was shopping at a Smart & Final store in La Quinta, CA, a box of Styrofoam cups fell from the top of one of the shelves within the store and hit her on the head. Plaintiff claimed that as a result of the incident she suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury and neck and back injuries, which had resulted in a cervical disc replacement surgery and the need for a future cervical fusion and spinal cord stimulator.

Plaintiff alleged that the Smart & Final store was kept in an unreasonably unsafe manner, that the store should not have stacked multiple boxes on top of each other, and that Smart & Final did not have sufficient policies and procedures to prevent the boxes from falling on its customers. Plaintiff filed suit against Smart & Final, LLC for Negligence and Premises Liability.

Yoka | Smith attorney Vivian I. Rivera tried this case in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. After five weeks of trial, Plaintiff asked the jury for $25 Million during closing. In just under 4 hours, the jury came back with a defense verdict on behalf of Smart & Final, LLC.