FDX-Cost of Safety & Delayed Compensation
04-04-2015, 01:25 PM
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FDX-Cost of Safety & Delayed Compensation
Judge OKs verdict, assesses interest on $165.5M judgment against FedEx
Friday, April 3, 2015 - 9:14 p.m.
LAS CRUCES >> A state judge in Santa Fe issued an expected judgment Friday formalizing a $165.5 million verdict issued by a jury against FedEx for a triple-fatal crash near Las Cruces.
District Court Judge Francis J. Mathew also assigned a 5 percent per-year interest rate on the verdict amount for time between the case's filing in 2012 until now, according to court documents.
If the original verdict remains unchanged, that would take the amount to be paid to the plaintiffs — the family of the victims and one crash survivor — to about $178 million.
That's based off a simple-interest calculation that's also pro-rated for partial years.
Attorneys for the crash victim and family had sought a 10 percent per year interest rate for that pre-trial time period, allowed under state law.
FedEx had opposed the granting of pre-trial interest.
In addition Friday, Mathew specified a post-judgment interest rate of 15 percent per year will apply until the case reaches its final resolution, including any appeals, according to court documents.
A FedEx spokesman has said the company plans to appeal the judgment, believed to be the largest for a civil lawsuit in the state's history.
FedEx in court filings had asked that the entry of judgment be postponed until after other pending matters — such as a challenge to the verdict amount or a retrial — are resolved.
But the judge didn't postpone it.
The case stems from a 2011 crash in which a FedEx-contracted big-rig slammed into a parked or slow-moving GMC pickup at Mile 117 on Interstate 10 — about 20 miles west of Las Cruces.
Two of the three occupants in the pickup were killed: 22-year-old Marialy Venegas Morga and her 4-year-old daughter, Ylairam Morga, both of El Paso.
The only survivor was Venegas Morga's son, Yahir Morga, who was 1 at the time, according to Sun-News archives.
The driver of the tractor-trailer, El Pasoan Elizabeth Quintana, also died.
El Paso attorney James Scherr — who represents Venegas Morga's husband, Alfredo Morga — said Friday the verdict is "about how important the family unit is — how important a mother is, how important a daughter is, a sister is, to a family.
"The Santa Fe jury and the judicial system have given respect and dignity to the value of human life, which it rightfully deserves," he said.
"In a society where paintings go for 40 million to hundreds of millions of dollars and sporting events and athletes receive 40 million to hundreds of millions of dollars, our society should value human life fairly.
This shows that our judicial system should likewise value human life."
A FedEx spokesman couldn't be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
UPDATE: FedEx emailed a statement to the Sun-News on Saturday morning: "FedEx Ground is committed to safety as our highest priority, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to those affected by this tragic accident.
We respectfully disagree with the judge's ruling, and will continue to pursue our post-trial motions."
After Friday's decisions, the case now revolves around post-trial matters.
For instance, FedEx has contended the verdict is excessive, something attorneys for the crash victims' families dispute.
During the January trial in Santa Fe, a jury awarded about $165.5 million to the plaintiffs.
FedEx and its driver and contractors together were deemed to be 95 percent responsible, with the driver of the GMC deemed 5 percent responsible.
That means FedEx is liable for $157,256,350 — all but 5 percent of the entire verdict.
While the contracting companies also were assigned some blame, FedEx had stipulated it would be liable for all the defendants' damages, if any resulted, attorneys have said.
The pre-trial interest rate of 5 percent per year will be assessed on the roughly $157.3 million, adding about $21 million to the total.
The rate applies to the time between July 31, 2012, and March 31, 2015
Friday, April 3, 2015 - 9:14 p.m.
LAS CRUCES >> A state judge in Santa Fe issued an expected judgment Friday formalizing a $165.5 million verdict issued by a jury against FedEx for a triple-fatal crash near Las Cruces.
District Court Judge Francis J. Mathew also assigned a 5 percent per-year interest rate on the verdict amount for time between the case's filing in 2012 until now, according to court documents.
If the original verdict remains unchanged, that would take the amount to be paid to the plaintiffs — the family of the victims and one crash survivor — to about $178 million.
That's based off a simple-interest calculation that's also pro-rated for partial years.
Attorneys for the crash victim and family had sought a 10 percent per year interest rate for that pre-trial time period, allowed under state law.
FedEx had opposed the granting of pre-trial interest.
In addition Friday, Mathew specified a post-judgment interest rate of 15 percent per year will apply until the case reaches its final resolution, including any appeals, according to court documents.
A FedEx spokesman has said the company plans to appeal the judgment, believed to be the largest for a civil lawsuit in the state's history.
FedEx in court filings had asked that the entry of judgment be postponed until after other pending matters — such as a challenge to the verdict amount or a retrial — are resolved.
But the judge didn't postpone it.
The case stems from a 2011 crash in which a FedEx-contracted big-rig slammed into a parked or slow-moving GMC pickup at Mile 117 on Interstate 10 — about 20 miles west of Las Cruces.
Two of the three occupants in the pickup were killed: 22-year-old Marialy Venegas Morga and her 4-year-old daughter, Ylairam Morga, both of El Paso.
The only survivor was Venegas Morga's son, Yahir Morga, who was 1 at the time, according to Sun-News archives.
The driver of the tractor-trailer, El Pasoan Elizabeth Quintana, also died.
El Paso attorney James Scherr — who represents Venegas Morga's husband, Alfredo Morga — said Friday the verdict is "about how important the family unit is — how important a mother is, how important a daughter is, a sister is, to a family.
"The Santa Fe jury and the judicial system have given respect and dignity to the value of human life, which it rightfully deserves," he said.
"In a society where paintings go for 40 million to hundreds of millions of dollars and sporting events and athletes receive 40 million to hundreds of millions of dollars, our society should value human life fairly.
This shows that our judicial system should likewise value human life."
A FedEx spokesman couldn't be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
UPDATE: FedEx emailed a statement to the Sun-News on Saturday morning: "FedEx Ground is committed to safety as our highest priority, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to those affected by this tragic accident.
We respectfully disagree with the judge's ruling, and will continue to pursue our post-trial motions."
After Friday's decisions, the case now revolves around post-trial matters.
For instance, FedEx has contended the verdict is excessive, something attorneys for the crash victims' families dispute.
During the January trial in Santa Fe, a jury awarded about $165.5 million to the plaintiffs.
FedEx and its driver and contractors together were deemed to be 95 percent responsible, with the driver of the GMC deemed 5 percent responsible.
That means FedEx is liable for $157,256,350 — all but 5 percent of the entire verdict.
While the contracting companies also were assigned some blame, FedEx had stipulated it would be liable for all the defendants' damages, if any resulted, attorneys have said.
The pre-trial interest rate of 5 percent per year will be assessed on the roughly $157.3 million, adding about $21 million to the total.
The rate applies to the time between July 31, 2012, and March 31, 2015
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