John Doe v. Concert Arena

Outcome: $2 million settlement

Description: A 19-year old construction employee attended an outdoor rock concert during which a large rain storm occurred. He, along with a large group of patrons, “body surfed” down a muddy hill, an activity that is popular among concert-goers whenever it rains at the arena. Unknown to the body-surfing patrons, the concert arena owner had installed a vertical overflow pipe to drain the water at the bottom of the hill. When the young man slid down the hill, his head struck the overflow pipe which had become submerged under the muddy rain water. He was seriously injured and now is confined to a wheelchair. By investigating the long history of concerts at this location, we were able to show that the concert arena owner knew that the hill would be used by patrons to body surf during rainy weather and that appropriate notice should have been posted about the newly installed overflow pipe.