Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP attorneys Adam Shea and Patrick Gunning obtained a $10,010,000 confidential settlement for injuries and deaths that occurred when a bank-owned 4-unit apartment building in Oakland, California caught fire.
Three people were killed and two were injured in an early morning fire that resulted from a number of safety code violations at the building, including a lack of functioning smoke detectors. Plaintiffs contended that the unsafe conditions were motivated by industry practices during the subprime mortgage crisis of minimizing costs in managing foreclosed properties, including by failing to maintain and repair units, until tenants had been evicted from the premises. Defendants contended that the fire was caused by the apartment occupants who had used an extension cord to supply electricity from one unit to another in the building.
The case settled at mediation.