$1.37M verdict after a decorative panel on a store's drink cooler struck a traveler's foot

A federal jury in Nashville awarded $1,374,500 to a traveler who was hurt in a retail shop at the city’s airport.

In August 2016 she went into the shop, took a bottle of water from a freestanding refrigerated cooler and, as she walked away, was struck in the foot by a wood panel fitted at the bottom of the cooler as decoration. First responders treated her at the scene and she made her flight home. She was later diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome. Her pain specialist testified that the condition has no cure and that she will likely need treatment for the rest of her life.

After a trial that ended January 11, 2019, the jury awarded $444,500 for future medical expenses and $930,000 in non-economic damages against the company that operated the shop. The operator asked the court to cut the non-economic award to Tennessee’s $750,000 cap, which would bring the total to $1,194,500. She argued the cap was unconstitutional.

The federal court sent that question to the Tennessee Supreme Court, which upheld the cap on February 26, 2020. The federal court entered its final judgment in April 2020. We have not seen that judgment’s figure.