California Attorneys Prevail in San Francisco Jury Trial

Los Angeles-area Partner Daniel Ip and Attorney Andrew K. Aaronian prevailed in a jury trial that lasted nearly 8 weeks. Our attorneys defended the case on behalf of our Homeowner’s Association (HOA) and property management company clients. Plaintiff filed suit in the Superior Court of San Francisco alleging water damage that contributed to toxic mold growing in her condominium unit.

Plaintiff owned a condominium unit on the third floor of a three-story building in San Francisco, California, that was managed by our HOA and property management clients. Plaintiff alleged that water leaked into several parts of her unit, contributing to toxic mold growth that then contributed to her personal injuries, mental distress and loss of use of her condo unit, as well as personal property damages. Plaintiff claimed that our Defendants failed to properly maintain the roof of the complex despite having documented knowledge that the rooftop was “pooling water” for years. Prior to trial, lead trial counsel, Daniel Ip, filed a cross-claim against Plaintiff on behalf of our HOA client and offered to settle the claim, which Plaintiff declined.

At trial, Plaintiff brought a team of experts including a roofing and construction professional, and a number of medical specialists. During Plaintiff’s case-in-chief, our Defense raised viable alternate causes of Plaintiff’s alleged illnesses and symptoms. The Defense’s general contractor/forensic leak investigator expert delivered compelling testimony disputing that the roof did not leak into Plaintiff’s unit. Our Defense also proved to the jury that the mold found behind Plaintiff’s drywall was due to Plaintiff’s steam shower. Additionally, the Defense’s mold expert presented a “page turner” of a direct examination on the basics of mold that included an overview of mold, mold investigation and remediation, as well as evidence of Plaintiff’s personal items that may have contributed to her mold exposure.

Following the nearly eight-week-long trial, the jury delivered a verdict in favor of the Defense and awarded our HOA client their demand in their cross-complaint.

Daniel defends clients in premises liability cases and homeowner’s association disputes, and handles housing and habitability matters. He also focuses his practice on civil litigation matters such as personal injury and wrongful death claims.

Andrew concentrates his practice on business litigation and general liability. He has prior experience as a judicial research attorney researching California law and drafting tentative rulings for numerous law and motion matters.