**By SALEM STATESMAN JOURNAL VIA AOL**
The Oregon Court of Appeals has reversed the sweeping verdict that found PacifiCorp negligent in four major 2020 Labor Day wildfires, potentially upending more than $1 billion in damages that wildfire survivors had been awarded in the years since the original trial.
A Multnomah County jury in June 2023 found the utility liable for the Santiam, Echo Mountain, 242, and South Obenchain fires and for damages to a class of roughly 2,500 victims. Since then, juries had awarded more than $1.2 billion to 189 survivors, with many more damages trials still scheduled.
The appellate court ruled that a key jury instruction used in the 2023 trial was legally erroneous and prejudicial to PacifiCorp. Specifically, the trial court had told jurors they could assume the evidence presented at trial applied to all class members, even though the appellate panel said certain evidence — especially on causation — did not necessarily apply to every plaintiff.
Because of that error, the Court of Appeals reversed and remanded the case. Lawyers said it was too early to know exactly what would happen next, but the ruling raises the possibility of a new trial and could put prior awards at risk. The decision arrived just two days after one class member had been awarded an additional $20 million in the latest damages phase.
PacifiCorp, which is owned by Berkshire Hathaway, said it remained sensitive to the profound losses suffered by communities affected by the fires. The company said the ruling supported its longstanding position that the class-action process had been prejudicial and was not an appropriate vehicle for managing wildfire litigation, while adding that it remains open to resolving reasonable claims and will continue to defend against unsupported claims.
Lawyers representing wildfire survivors described the decision as a procedural setback rather than a judgment on PacifiCorp’s conduct. They emphasized that the appellate court did not conclude PacifiCorp failed to start the fires or that survivors were unharmed, and they argued that the company would still have to answer those claims in further proceedings.
The three-judge appellate panel also appeared to question whether victims from all four fires should have been grouped into a single class. Multnomah County Judge Steffan Alexander and counsel for both sides are expected to determine the next procedural steps.
