Latest news with #SadieNovotny
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Who is Sadie Novotny and why is the Sonoma County woman suing Costco for $14 million?
A woman from Santa Rosa, California, is suing Costco for more than $14 million, saying a heavy display cabinet fell on her while she was shopping, leaving her with serious injuries. Sadie Novotny filed the lawsuit on April 29, claiming the store was careless in how it managed its merchandise. She says this led to the accident that caused her permanent injuries. The case was first filed in California Superior Court in Alameda County, but was moved to the US District Court for Northern California on June 5, after Costco's legal team requested the change. Also Read: Apple agrees to $95 million Siri privacy settlement: How to claim your payment According to the lawsuit, Novotny was shopping at a Costco in Santa Rosa on March 22 when a large liquor cabinet fell on her 'without warning.' The suit says she suffered 'multiple, permanent and catastrophic' injuries, including a head injury and a traumatic brain injury. A Costco incident report included in the complaint shows that Novotny and her husband were trying to buy a liquor cabinet when the floor model suddenly tipped over. She said she managed to catch the cabinet and push it back, but right away felt pain in her 'right shoulder, forearm, hand, fingers and lower back,' according to the report. Novotny is suing for general negligence, but also for premises liability and products liability. In legal terms, premises liability means the store could be held responsible for injuries that happen on their property. Products liability means a defective or unsafe item may have caused harm. In May, attorney Nick Rineberg, who represents both Costco Wholesale Corporation ('Costco') and Costco Wholesale Membership, Inc. ('Membership'), filed a request asking the court to remove Membership from the lawsuit. He said, 'Costco and Membership are separate entities, Membership does not operate the subject premises, Membership does not employ any persons at the subject premises, and Membership does not own, lease, operate, or manage the subject premises.' The case is now being handled in federal court.
Global News
a day ago
- Business
- Global News
Woman sues Costco for $14M after cabinet allegedly falls on her while shopping
A woman in California is suing Costco for more than $14 million, alleging that a display cabinet fell on her at one of the stores, resulting in severe injuries. The shopper, Sadie Novotny of Santa Rosa, Calif., originally filed the lawsuit seeking $14,110,000 in general and special damages on April 29, alleging that Costco acted negligently by failing to properly manage store merchandise, which she says led to her injuries. Novotny is suing the Costco corporation for general negligence, premises liability and products liability. She is seeking $9 million for pain and suffering, $5 million for emotional distress and additional damages for medical expenses and lost wages. According to court documents, viewed by People, Novotny claims that the liquor display cabinet fell onto her 'suddenly and without warning' on March 22 and led to 'multiple, permanent and severe injuries thereby, including but not limited to a closed head injury and traumatic brain injury.' Story continues below advertisement The lawsuit was initially filed in California Superior Court for Alameda County, but was moved to the United States District Court of Northern California on June 5 at the request of Costco's counsel after being served for the second time. In her initial incident report, Novotny wrote, 'My husband and I were buying a liquor cabinet. I was holding the flatbed when the floor model fell on top of me. I caught the cabinet and pushed it back. My right shoulder, forearm, hand, fingers, and lower back hurt after the accident.' Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Novotny also notes that Costco 'should have known that a condition on their property created an unreasonable risk of harm to users' and wrote that the company failed to protect customers or 'give adequate warning' to the store's conditions. She added that the display cabinet 'had thin legs' and was sitting on 'a defective or worn or otherwise inadequate wooden pallet, in an unreasonably dangerous manner, which posed a serious risk of harm to the public.' Story continues below advertisement The lawsuit alleges that Costco failed to properly inspect and maintain the display and argues that the wholesale company should have known about the possible danger. Nick Rineberg, a lawyer whose office is representing the Costco Wholesale Corporation and Costco Wholesale Membership, Inc., requested that Novotny dismiss membership from the initial complaint. 'Costco and Membership are separate entities, Membership does not operate the subject premises, Membership does not employ any persons at the subject premises, and Membership does not own, lease, operate, or manage the subject premises.' Claude Armand Wyle, Novotny's lawyer, told ABC News that a Costco representative told him they have footage of the incident, but won't send it to him to review. 'The employee told me that the video didn't happen the way I explained it,' Wyle told the outlet. 'I told her, 'Well, send it.' She then said, 'Oh no, you can only get that video through discovery.'' 'That meant I had to file a lawsuit,' Wyle added. 'I couldn't investigate any further. I was stuck. If I wanted to get to the truth, I had to file a lawsuit.' Wyle also said that Novotny went to the hospital an hour after the incident and doctors had reportedly diagnosed her with a concussion. Story continues below advertisement He added that his client feels slightly better now but still suffers from headaches and vision problems. A case management conference is scheduled for Sept. 4 at the San Francisco Federal Courthouse.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Woman sues Costco for $14 million after cabinet allegedly falls, causing brain injury
A woman in California is suing Costco for more than $14 million after a heavy liquor cabinet display allegedly fell on her, causing severe injuries. The shopper, Sadie Novotny, filed the lawsuit against Costco Wholesale Corporation following the March 22 incident at the company's Santa Rosa store in northern California. According to court documents, Novotny was walking down an aisle when she alleges a large, heavy cabinet used to display liquor suddenly toppled onto her. The lawsuit claims Novotny suffered multiple severe and permanent injuries, including a traumatic brain injury. She is seeking $9 million for pain and suffering, $5 million for emotional distress and additional damages for medical expenses and lost wages. The case, originally filed in Alameda County Superior Court, has been moved to federal court at Costco's request. A case management conference is scheduled for Sept. 4 at the San Francisco Federal Courthouse. According to the lawsuit, the cabinet was displayed on what's described as a defective or worn wooden pallet. The filing argues that this created an unsafe situation for shoppers, claiming the display was "set up in an unreasonably dangerous manner." The lawsuit alleges Costco failed to properly inspect and maintain the display, arguing the company should have known about the danger and either fixed it or warned customers about the risk. ABC News has reached out to Costco Wholesale Corporation for comment. MORE: Cincinnati high school graduate faces deportation after routine ICE check-in Claude Armand Wyle, Novotny's attorney, claimed to ABC News that a Costco representative told him they have a video of the incident, but won't send it to him to review. "The employee told me that the video didn't happen the way I explained it," Wyle said. "I told her, 'Well, send it.' She then said, 'Oh no, you can only get that video through discovery.'" "That meant I had to file a lawsuit," he added. "I couldn't investigate any further. I was stuck. If I wanted to get to the truth, I had to file a lawsuit." Wyle told ABC News that Novotny went to the hospital an hour after the incident after she told her husband she felt "really bad." "When she arrived at the hospital, doctors diagnosed her with a concussion," Wyle said. "She suffered a head injury. We don't know how bad it is yet." Wyle said his client feels slightly better but still suffers from headaches and vision problems. The lawsuit is seeking compensation for current and future medical expenses, estimated at $2 million, along with lost earnings and future earning capacity losses of approximately $2 million. Additional damages are being sought for loss of household services.
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
California woman sues Costco for millions after liquor cabinet allegedly falls on her
A California woman is seeking millions in damages from Costco following an incident at one of the discount retailer's stores that she claims left her with lasting injuries. In a lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of Alameda on April 29, Sadie Novotny alleges she sustained "multiple, permanent and severe" injuries after a heavy liquor cabinet on display at a Costco Wholesale store in Santa Rosa fell on her "suddenly and without warning." Novotny was shopping at Costco with her husband on March 22 when the alleged incident occurred, according to the lawsuit. Novotny claims she suffered a closed head injury, or traumatic brain injury as a result. Claude Wyle, an injury attorney and partner at Choulos, Choulos & Wyle who is representing Novotny, told CBS MoneyWatch that Novotny went to the emergency room after the incident and was diagnosed with a mild concussion. She continues to suffer from difficulty finding words, vision problems and headaches, he said. Novotny is suing Costco for general negligence, premises liability and products liability. Wyle said his client is seeking millions in damages. Wyle said Costco has a video of the alleged incident that has not been released to him, and which he likely won't see until the formal discovery period of the lawsuit. Costco did not immediately respond to CBS MoneyWatch's request for comment. In her complaint, Novotny claims Costco acted negligently by failing to fix the dangerous conditions that led to the alleged incident. The lawsuit also alleges that the discount retailer failed to adequately train its employees to properly maintain merchandise and that each one bears some blame for Novotny's injuries. "The negligent conduct of defendants and each of them was a substantial factor in causing plaintiff's injuries," the lawsuit reads. The lawsuit was moved to the U.S. District Court for Northern California last week at the request of Cosco, Wyle said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Woman alleges Costco cabinet display fell on her in $14M lawsuit
(NewsNation) — A California woman has sued Costco Wholesale Corporation for more than $14 million in damages after she says a cabinet display fell on her while shopping. Sadie Novotny said she was shopping at the big-box retailer's Santa Rosa, California, location on March 22 when a heavy liquor cabinet display fell on her, according to a lawsuit obtained by multiple outlets. The suit alleges the incident caused 'multiple, permanent and catastrophic' injuries, including some to her head and brain. Dip, dip hooray: Chipotle introduces 'bold' new sauce, first in five years Novotny is suing Costco for general negligence, premises liability and products liability. She alleges Costco 'negligently failed to adequately manage and or operate their store and or their merchandise' and 'negligently failed to train, manage and supervise their employees.' That negligence, paired with the cabinet's 'thin legs' and positioning on an 'inadequate wooden pallet,' caused the cabinet to fall, Novotny's lawsuit says. What is Labubu, and where can you buy them? The $14 million in damages includes $5 million for emotional distress and another $5 million for pain, suffering and inconvenience, according to the lawsuit. NewsNation has reached out to Costco for comment. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
