Mold can slowly destroy anyone’s health and life in general. Which is why mold lawsuit settlements are very common in the legal space.
It can lead to serious health issues and damage to properties, making it a common source of legal disputes.
In this post, we’ve compiled a list of mold lawsuit settlements and the corresponding amounts awarded to plaintiffs.
From high-profile cases involving celebrities to disputes over public housing, these cases demonstrate the far-reaching consequences of mold exposure.
So, grab a cup of coffee and settle in as we explore some of the most notable mold lawsuits in recent years.
1. Condo resident in florida receives compensation for mold-induced illness
Amount: $48 million
A South Florida woman, Lynette Jividen, was recently awarded a staggering $48 million in damages after a leaky roof in her apartment led to mold contamination, leaving her permanently and severely ill.
The decision was delivered by a Broward County jury in a virtual hearing, and it has been described as one of the largest mold-related verdicts in history.
The jury determined that Jividen’s landlord was at fault for failing to properly maintain the apartment and repair the leaky roof, which ultimately caused the mold contamination.
As a result, Jividen was awarded a total of $48 million in damages, including $10 million for future medical costs, $1.2 million for lost earnings, and a staggering $35 million for the loss of her capacity to enjoy life.
Source: Fox23 News
2. Baxter to pay $18 million settlement over mold at North Carolina plant, after ignoring employee complaints
Amount: $18 million
According to a statement by the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday, Baxter Healthcare Corp, a unit of Baxter International, has agreed to pay $18 million to settle criminal and civil liabilities over allegations that it ignored mold contamination in air filters at its North Cove plant in Marion, North Carolina.
As part of the settlement, the Justice Department has imposed a deferred prosecution agreement with penalties and forfeiture totaling $16 million, in addition to a civil settlement of approximately $2.158 million under the False Claims Act with the federal government.
The government accused the management at Baxter’s North Carolina plant of ignoring an employee’s warning about the presence of mold in the air filters located in the ceiling of the room where sterile intravenous solutions were produced.
Source: Reuters
3. California family who claimed that mold caused brain damage in baby won lawsuit
Amount: $22.6 million
The lawsuit was filed by the parents of Kellen Gorman, who claimed that toxic mold in their custom-built Manhattan Beach home caused brain damage in their baby.
The parents allege that the framing studs used in the construction of their home were improperly stored by Crenshaw Lumber Co. Inc. of Gardena, leading to mold contamination and health issues for their child.
Source: NBC News
4. Ed McMahon reaches a settlement of in lawsuit over mold contamination in home
Amount: $7.2 million
Ed McMahon, former “Tonight Show” sidekick, and his wife have reached a settlement of $7.2 million in a lawsuit alleging that toxic mold spread through their Beverly Hills home, causing health problems and property damage, including the death of their dog.
According to court records, insurers and others involved in the construction and maintenance of the home agreed to pay the settlement.
The settlement is notable for being the highest published recovery in the country by an individual alleging property damage in a mold case, according to attorney Michael Childress of the American Trial Lawyers Association.
This legal victory serves as a reminder of the dangers of toxic mold and the importance of proper construction and maintenance practices to prevent its growth.
Source: LA Times
4. Family in Sacramento california won legal over mold health damages
Amount: $2.7 million
Darren and Marcie Mazza, along with their young son Bryce, have won a landmark victory in their toxic mold-related personal injury lawsuit.
The Sacramento, California jury awarded them a record-breaking $2.7 million on November 8th, making it the largest personal injury verdict in a toxic mold-related lawsuit in U.S. history.
The verdict recognizes the harm and suffering caused by toxic mold exposure, and highlights the need for accountability and action to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.
Source: Insurance Journal
5. The Ballard family in Texas gets sick from mold infestation
Amount: $32 million
The Ballard family gained national recognition after their case drew attention to the dangers of toxic mold in homes.
Originally, the court awarded them an astounding $32 million, but after an appeal, they received a lesser settlement of $4 million, along with additional compensation from Farmers Insurance.
Melinda Ballard first became concerned about mold when her child developed a respiratory illness, her husband developed Alzheimer’s, and she began experiencing alarming symptoms like coughing up blood.
Initially, the case began as a small claim for water damage, but it soon turned into a large-scale mold disaster when they discovered mold throughout their entire house. This case was one of the first to raise awareness about the serious health risks associated with toxic mold exposure, and its impact on the lives of those affected.
Source: Austin Chronicle
6. Kushner’s Reaches settlement in mold infestation lawsuit in Maryland
Amount: $3.25 million
On Friday, Maryland Attorney General announced that Westminster Management, a property management company co-owned by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former President Donald J. Trump, has agreed to a settlement of $3.25 million.
The settlement includes a penalty payment and restitution to thousands of tenants who were charged excessive fees and were subjected to issues such as leaks, rodents, and mold infestations.
The lawsuit, which was filed in 2019, alleged that Westminster Management and its 25 affiliated businesses, which owned almost 9,000 units across the Baltimore area, violated consumer protection laws by imposing illegal fees on tenants and failing to maintain the properties properly.
Source: The New York Times
7. Mercedes-Benz Settles for a Significant Amount Following the Discovery of Mold Growth in their HVAC Systems
Amount: Undisclosed
Mercedes-Benz has agreed to a settlement following a class-action lawsuit over the growth of mold in the HVAC systems of several of its vehicle models.
The mold growth was causing unpleasant odors, described by one Mercedes owner and attorney, Ketan Patel, as a “pungent, mildew, sweaty, moldy, sweat sock smell.”
Patel and co-counsel filed the class-action lawsuit on behalf of affected customers. The settlement covers over 2.5 million vehicles across the United States.
Source: Kiro7 News
8. Newly built home having mold problem
Amount: $450,000
Ed Gaskins and Katie King of Everett Gaskins Hancock Raleigh, a dispute resulting from alleged airflow issues in a newly constructed home that led to toxic mold growth has been resolved with a $450,000 settlement.
The contractors fulfilled the homeowners’ design requests, including a commercial-grade vent hood in the kitchen. However, the powerful exhaust from the appliance created a negative air balance, drawing in humid, unconditioned air that caused excessive moisture and mold growth.
King explained that the settlement was reached in response to the homeowners’ complaints about the mold problem.
Source: The North Coralina Weekly
9. Private landlord settles with Fort Meade families who sued over mold-infested homes
Amount: Undisclosed
A settlement was reached in a lawsuit filed by 11 military families against a private company over moldy homes at Fort Meade, Maryland, according to federal court records.
The lawsuit accused Corvias Management-Army and its subsidiary Meade Communities, which manages the military family housing at Fort Meade, of neglecting maintenance requests and providing inadequate responses that did not address the underlying issues in homes.
As a result, the homes experienced mold growth, water leaks, and sewage backups.
Source: The Washington Post
10. University of Kansas settle lawsuit over mold issue in university dormitory
Amount: $40,000
The University of Kansas has reached a settlement with former student-athlete Laine Evans, agreeing to pay her $40,000 to resolve a lawsuit in which she claimed that mold in her dormitory room’s vents made her sick.
According to reports, the university has denied the allegations but decided to pay $20,000 to Evans and $20,000 to her attorneys to avoid litigation expenses and uncertainty.
Evans, who was a freshman golfer at the university during the 2015-16 academic year, alleged in her 2018 lawsuit that the apartment-style housing where she lived on campus was unsafe.
She claimed that the university failed to address the mold problem, causing her to suffer from illnesses.
The university, on the other hand, argued that Evans had exaggerated her health problems and was not at fault for them.
Source: Kansas 12News
11. Connecticut Town Reaches Settlement on Indoor Air Quality Lawsuit
Amount: $500,000
After a lengthy legal battle, the town of Wilton in Connecticut has agreed to a $500,000 settlement in a lawsuit brought by concerned parents regarding the poor indoor air quality at a local school.
The lawsuit claims that the substandard building conditions at the school had caused harm to their children.
While the extent of the harm caused by the poor air quality is not specified in the lawsuit, the settlement serves as an acknowledgement of the town’s responsibility in addressing environmental conditions in their public facilities.
Source: Campus Safety Magazine
12. Former tenants of Santa Rosa apartment complex receive settlement after filing lawsuit over long-term exposure to mold
Amount: $2.7 million
In 2015, a group of residents primarily consisting of low-income Latino families living in a 10-unit complex filed a lawsuit against the original owners after enduring years of mold and pest infestations.
Despite numerous complaints, the owners failed to address the issues, leaving the tenants in unsafe and unsanitary living conditions.
However, things took a turn for the worse when the property was sold in 2014.
The new owners not only increased the rents but also threatened to evict the tenants if they continued to complain about the deteriorating living conditions. Ultimately, the residents were forced to vacate the apartments after the city deemed them uninhabitable.
Source: The Press Democrat
13. Megan Fox reaches settlement in lawsuit with Brad Pitt’s manager over purchase of allegedly ‘moldy’ Malibu home
Amount: $5 million
Hollywood actress Megan Fox has reached a settlement in her legal dispute with Cynthia Pett-Dante, the former owner of a $3.3 million mansion in Malibu that Fox had purchased in May 2016.
Shortly after moving in, Fox discovered a number of issues including mold and leaks that required costly repairs and remediation estimated at $500,000.
In her complaint filed two years later, Fox alleged that the home had caused serious health problems for her.
Source: Fox News
14. Public housing tenants reaches settlement for “moldy” living conditions
Amount: $650,000
Nine elderly and disabled public housing tenants in Richmond, California, are set to receive $658,000 in compensation from the city after living in the Hacienda housing complex, a notorious housing project that was infested with roaches, mice, squatters, and mold for years.
The settlement is a painful but welcome vindication for the former residents, including a grandmother who was previously homeless, a senior citizen who was wheelchair-bound and frequently hospitalized, and a man with a prosthetic leg.
The agreement was reached following a lawsuit filed by the tenants against the city.
Source: Reveal News
15. Elmhurst School District 205 settles with teacher for rampant mold in her workplace
Amount: Undisclosed
A lawsuit filed by Nora Fox alleged that Lincoln, where she taught from 2005, suffered from regular flooding, leading to the growth of mold and poor air quality.
The lawsuit claimed that the water damage was so severe that visible mold spores often formed on classroom materials, and in one instance, a mushroom grew out of the floor.
Her health began to deteriorate in 2014, and she was later diagnosed with a severe mold allergy, which caused her pain, fatigue, rashes, and gastrointestinal issues, according to the lawsuit.
Fox informed the school of her diagnosis in 2016 and requested that her classroom’s air conditioning unit, which had not been cleaned in 12 years, be replaced to accommodate her disability.
The lawsuit alleges that the unit was only removed after six weeks of repeated requests.
Source: The Patch
16. New Jersey music teacher awarded after suffering respiratory issues due to mold
Amount: $1.8 million
The Millburn district faced a lawsuit from Mary Jean Alsina, a tenured teacher who claimed that she was exposed to mold while working in a specific room in the middle school.
Alsina contended that she had reported a musty smell in the room, water dripping from the ceiling, stains and seepage on the walls, and mold growth.
She further alleged that although the district had conducted testing and the custodial staff had cleaned up the area, the problem remained unresolved.
Source: NJ.com
17. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center settled with the family of a woman who passed because of a mold outbreak
Amount: $1.35 million
The estate of Tracy Fischer, a 47-year-old patient who died from a fungal infection she contracted at the UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, will receive payouts of $850,000 and $500,000, according to recent reports.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggested that the mold-infested cardiothoracic intensive care unit of the hospital may have been the source of the mold that caused the fatal infection.
UPMC suspended its transplant program for six days after discovering mold at Presbyterian and another hospital. Court documents reveal that the family’s attorney will receive a 35% cut of the settlement.
Source: CBS News