A jury in Los Angeles County said Starbucks was responsible for injuries to customers who were burned during a one-time driving drink handover, which is $50 million.
Los Angeles resident Michael Garcia claimed he was severely burned in 2020 after he “stood into himself” on his hot tea. The first one, then another hot drink poured on his legs and their lid popped out. He claimed he suffered severe burns, including his genitals.
Garcia accused Starbucks of negligence and created a store security video that seemed to show that when the barista passed him an order through a driving window, a universal-sized drink sitting on a tray askedw.
Jurors agreed on Friday and ordered the Seattle-based company to pay Garcia $50 million in past and future damage, including pain and pain.
Starbucks said it plans to appeal the verdict.
“We sympathize with Mr. Garcia, but we disagree with the jury’s decision that we are at fault for the incident and believe that compensation is too much,” said Jaci Anderson, director of Corporate Communications, in a statement to the Times on Saturday. “We have always been committed to the highest safety standards in the store, including handling hot drinks.”
The award returned to the decision of McDonald’s Civil Court after a jury awarded $3 million to an Albuquerque woman scalded by hot coffee in 1994. Stella Liebeck, 79, suffered a third-degree burn that required multiple skin grafts. Her lawyer argues that McDonald’s has a history of hundreds of consumer harm complaints.
Later, the judge drastically lowered the award, but McDonald’s cases were often cited in campaigns for infringement awards.
Instead of immediately responding to the Times request for comment, Garcia’s attorney told another news outlet that Starbucks had some responsibility for its barista’s actions, which she said she did not remember, according to court records.
“This jury verdict is a crucial step in getting Starbucks to blatantly ignore client safety and not take responsibility,” said Nick Rowley, an attorney for Garcia. Associated Press.
The incident described in the lawsuit occurred on February 8, 2020, at the Starbucks Passage in Exhibition Park. Garcia, a postal deliveryman at the time, was buying orders for three Venti hot teas. They gave him in a cardboard drink carrier.
At some point during the handover, two teas fell off the carrier and spilled on Garcia’s leg, causing him to “the terrible burn injury that required multiple surgeries” and “permanent disfigure” to his groin area, according to court documents reviewed by the New York Times. The medical records submitted in the case show that he received two skin grafts and suffered lasting pain and sexual dysfunction.
Garcia blamed the oil spill on the barista, claiming that “there was not firmly securely secured the lids of each hot drink that were negligent, careless and reckless plaintiffs.” He testified that from the outset, he could see that the lids of one of the drinks were not placed.
Court documents said Starbucks held in its initial response that Garcia had no employees “incurred any harm, damage or loss from any conduct or negligence.”
The company further accused Garcia of “negligence on contribution” during the trial, the document said.
Before the jury trial, Starbucks offered Garcia $3 million (later $30 million) to settle, CBS News Report.
CBS reports Garcia agreed to the conditions for the company to apologize and change its policies, including adding that all employees need to double checks before providing hot drinks to customers. Starbucks rejected the terms and the case was tried.
South Los Angeles resident Muriel Evans proposes Similar lawsuits In 2024 against Starbucks, she accused of suffering obvious nerve damage and disfigure after the barista messed up a cup of coffee and sprinkled it on her legs. Attorneys in the case accused Starbucks of “recklessly ignoring” client safety by providing “despite numerous reports and warnings” in defective cups.
Evans’ jury trial is scheduled to take place in February 2026.
