$5 Million Verdict in Flying J Wrongful Death Case, Vacated After Sole Survivor Died Pending Appeal

Samantha Hamblen died in a car crash on a highway adjacent to a Flying J travel center operated by Pilot Travel Centers, LLC in Gadsden County, Florida. Her family alleged that conditions at or near the facility contributed to the collision. Her father, Steven Hamblen, was her sole statutory survivor under Florida's Wrongful Death Act and sought damages for the mental pain and suffering he endured following her death.

Jimmy Fasig of Fasig Brooks, along with co-counsel Bryan S. Gowdy of Creed and Gowdy, P.A., tried the case in Gadsden County Circuit Court. The jury found Pilot Travel Centers liable and awarded Steven Hamblen $200,000 per year for 25 years, totaling $5 million in pain and suffering damages. The jury also assigned a substantial share of fault to two non-party defendants under Florida's Fabre doctrine, reducing the net verdict to approximately $1.7 million after comparative-fault apportionment.

After trial, Pilot Travel Centers moved for a new trial. While that motion was still pending in the circuit court, Steven Hamblen died. That sequence of events became the central issue on appeal. Under section 768.24 of the Florida Wrongful Death Act, a survivor who dies before 'final judgment' can recover only for lost support and services up to the date of death, not for pain and suffering. Flying J argued that final judgment had not yet been entered when Steven died, which meant the pain-and-suffering award had to be eliminated.

The Gadsden County Circuit Court agreed and entered a new judgment of $0. Fasig Brooks and co-counsel appealed to Florida's First District Court of Appeal, arguing that the trial court's original ruling constituted final judgment before Steven's death. The First DCA unanimously affirmed the trial court on February 26, 2021, in a published opinion interpreting what 'final judgment' means for purposes of survivor death under the Florida Wrongful Death Act. The case is now cited as precedent on that statutory question.

The outcome turned entirely on timing: a $5 million verdict lawfully returned by a jury became uncollectable because the one person entitled to the award did not survive the post-trial motion practice. The published appellate decision is Hamblen v. Pilot Travel Centers LLC, No. 1D19-1613 (Fla. 1st DCA Feb. 26, 2021).