Bob Julian Sends Message of Accountability in KOIN-TV Segment on Oregon Winery’s Lawsuit Against Utility Company

Partner Bob Julian was featured in a segment for CBS affiliate KOIN-TV in Portland, Oregon, sharing that numerous wineries are signing up to file complaints against utility company PacifiCorp following Labor Day wildfires in 2020 that tainted grapes, damaged wine production and ruined sales - a result of PacifiCorp failing to shut off power despite urgent weather warnings. In December, a Lane County circuit court judge denied PacifiCorp's motion to dismiss negligence and gross negligence claims made by Julian's client, Brigadoon Vineyards, which filed a lawsuit in June 2023 alleging that electrical system failures during the wildfires devastated their business.

"When a government official - indeed, the state fire chief for the whole state - tells the utility that there's a high danger they're going to start fires unless they turn off the power, the utility should listen to that and do it, or they're going to end up paying double damages or punitive damages on the basis of their willfulness," said Julian.

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