An Oregon appeals court sided with PacifiCorp on Wednesday in a ruling that could possibly jeopardize over $1 billion in damages for victims of the state's devastating 2020 wildfires.
The Oregon Court of Appeals sent the class-action case back to a lower trial court over concerns about a jury instruction given during a 2023 trial. In that trial, jurors found the utility liable for negligently failing to cut power despite warnings from top fire officials and determined it should have to pay punitive and other damages — a decision that applied to a class of property owners.
