Sacramento Attorney Wins Second Of Back To Back Civil Trials Against Autozone, Inc. With $1.5 Million Verdict

SACRAMENTO – CA.- On Friday, February 12, 2010 a jury in the Eastern District Federal Court, Sacramento, concluded AutoZone, Inc. unlawfully failed to accommodate and failed to engage in a good-faith interactive process. The causes of action pertain to Plaintiff Randy Cosby, a senior District Manager of AutoZone, being forced to take an unpaid medical leave of absence after his doctor restricted his driving privileges for 30 days in January of 2006. Mr. Cosby requested to work from home or have his wife drive him to and from work in his company vehicle. Upon his return to work, in February 2006, Mr. Cosby received his first negative evaluation in 13 years of employment with AutoZone, citing conduct related to his time away from work. Plaintiff Randy Cosby, from Corning, CA, made more profit for the company in his last year of employment than the prior year when he received a rating of “Achieves Expectations” on his Annual Performance Review. Mr. Cosby was terminated by AutoZone, Inc., on September 5, 2006.

The Honorable Senior District Judge, Lawrence Karlton presided over the lengthy trial which began on January 26, 2010 and ended February 12, 2010. The jury awarded Mr. Cosby $136,000 to compensate Mr. Cosby for his lost wages and $1,364,000 for mental suffering. The jury concluded the failure to accommodate and failure to engage in the interactive process was perpetrated by a managing agent and/or officer of AutoZone, Inc.

After a brief deliberation, the jury awarded no punitive damages against AutoZone. The jury felt that the $1.5 million was compensation enough for Mr. Cosby though they did feel like the company should be punished for their ineptitude.

Mr. Cosby was represented by Lawrance A. Bohm, Bohm Law Group and Charles E. Moore, Simpson and Moore.

AutoZone was represented by Richard R. Gray and Barbara Blackburn of Littler Mendelson.

Cosby v. AutoZone, Inc., et al., United States District Court, Eastern District of California, Case No. 2:08-CV-00505-LKK-DAD.

This case was the second for Mr. Bohm against AutoZone in just as many months. Kell v. AutoZone, Inc., et al., case number 07AS04375 in Sacramento Superior Court concluded on January 21, 2010. In the Kell matter, AutoZone, Inc. was found guilty of retaliation and the jury awarded Plaintiff, Travis Kell, $136,827 in economic damages. The jury also saw fit to punish AutoZone for the actions of its managing agents and/or officers by awarding Mr. Kell $1,231,848 in punitive damages. The punitive damage amount was the largest sum (a nine time multiplier of the compensatory damages) allowable under state law.

For more information contact the Bohm Law Group at 916-927-5574

Article provided courtesy of the Bohm Law Group.