Laporte v. Dept of Agriculture

Outcome: 5.5 million dollar verdict

Description: Laura Laporte was seriously injured when a worker for Florida's Department of Agriculture pulled in front of her and caused an accident. Ms. Laporte's injuries were made more catastrophic by the fact that she had muscular dystrophy. Because of the state laws on soveriegn immunity, the verdict was initially limited to $100,000.00, but after years of work, the legislature passed a special claims bill awarding Ms. Laporte 4 million dollars.