$4,600,000 VERDICT FOR ACID BURNS

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As John moved a large piece of equipment across the factory floor, it fell, smashing into a six gallon glass bottle of sulfuric acid that a co-worker had left sitting out. John slipped into the spreading puddle of acid, burning his shoulder, upper arm, and neck. Since the chemical manufacturer knew the acid bottle was to be used in a factory, Martin Brigham, lead trial counsel, argued that the bottle should have been encased in a heavy plastic wrap. Videotaped testing of a wrapped bottle withstanding heavy impacts convinced the jury to rapidly return a verdict that was more than twenty times the defendants’ highest offer to settle.