Los Angeles Jury Awards Celeste Galvez $2.43 Million in Motor-Vehicle Injury Case

Celeste Galvez took her injury claim against Robert Roland Firchow all the way to a jury, and in late 2019 a Los Angeles County panel sided with her. The case began on January 15, 2016, when Galvez filed suit at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. Court records list it as case number BC607278 and classify it as a personal-injury matter arising from a motor vehicle collision.

Galvez was the injured plaintiff. The public docket does not lay out her medical details, but the claim sought damages for the harm she attributed to the crash. The two sides could not agree on a number, so the matter did not settle. After nearly four years on the court's calendar, it went to trial.

The Dominguez Firm represented Galvez. The trial team of record included Olivier A. Taillieu, Judd R. Allen, Jennifer R. Bagosy, Alex M. Valenzuela, and Matthew K. Joy. The case was tried before Judge Amy D. Hogue in the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

On November 22, 2019, the jury returned a verdict for Galvez in the amount of $2,430,615. The court entered judgment on the award and added $17,036.93 in costs. The records reviewed show no later reduction, remittitur, or reversal of the figure on appeal.

The result drew attention beyond the courtroom. TopVerdict, which catalogs jury awards by county and practice area, ranked it number 23 on its list of the top 50 personal-injury verdicts in Los Angeles County for 2019. For a single-plaintiff auto case, a seven-figure award sits well above the range where most motor-vehicle claims resolve.

Judgment was entered for $2,430,615 plus $17,036.93 in costs.