Bexar County Jury Awards $124,496,993 in Defective Seat Crash
One driver was stopped in traffic when their vehicle was hit from behind. The impact caused the driver's seat to fail and collapse backward, leading the driver's head to strike a child in the back seat. The child suffered a severe brain injury, resulting in blindness and partial paralysis.
Case Information Updated: October 2025
About Head/Brain Injury Injuries
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) range from mild concussions to severe brain damage. Car accidents are a leading cause of TBI, with effects ranging from temporary symptoms to permanent cognitive impairment.
Case Outcome
- Outcome
- Verdict-Plaintiff
- Amount
- $124,496,993
- County
- Bexar County, TX
- Resolved
- 2016
Injury & Accident Details
- Injury Type
- Head/Brain Injury
- Accident Type
- Rear-end
- Case Type
- Product Liability, Defective Design
Settlement Context
This verdict-plaintiff of $124,496,993 is above the median of $1,893,000 for head/brain injury cases resolved by verdict-plaintiff. The typical range is $93,169 to $9,140,000, based on 45 cases in our database.
Case Overview
In December 2012, a 7-year-old minor plaintiff was a rear-seat passenger in a 2005 Audi A4, stopped in traffic on SH 16 in Bexar County. The vehicle was struck from the rear by another driver. As a result of the collision, the driver's seat in the plaintiff's vehicle allegedly failed and collapsed backward, causing the driver's head to strike the minor plaintiff's head. The plaintiff sustained a severe brain injury, a fractured skull, and was diagnosed with subsequent blindness and partial paralysis.
The plaintiff filed a lawsuit in the 73rd Judicial District Court of Bexar County, alleging negligence against the driver whose vehicle struck theirs. The lawsuit also claimed the motor vehicle manufacturer was liable for defective design of its 2005 A4, specifically regarding the driver's seat, and for inadequate warnings.
The defendants denied the allegations. The defendant driver and the defendant manufacturer maintained that the plaintiff and the vehicle's driver were not wearing their seat belts at the time of the incident. The manufacturer further contended that the seat back was not defectively designed and denied that the plaintiff's injuries resulted from contact with the driver's head.
The case proceeded to a four-week trial. After two-and-a-half days of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. The jury assessed liability at 25% to the defendant driver, 55% to the defendant manufacturer, and 20% to the plaintiff driver. The plaintiff was awarded a total sum of $124,496,993 in damages.
Understanding This Case
- Most mild TBIs resolve within weeks to months. Moderate to severe TBI often results in permanent impairment affecting cognition, behavior, and physical function.
- This case went to trial and resulted in a jury verdict. Verdicts can yield higher awards but carry the risk of receiving nothing if the jury rules against the plaintiff.
- This case was resolved in Bexar County, Texas. Local jury tendencies, judge assignments, and regional economic conditions all influence case outcomes in this jurisdiction.
- Resolved in 2016, this case reflects the legal and economic conditions of that period, including medical costs, insurance practices, and jury award trends at the time.
VerdictlyTM Score
This outcome significantly deviates from similar cases
This score is calculated by analyzing injury type, accident details, geographic location, temporal trends, and comparing against 2,000+ similar cases in our database.
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