Caddell & Chapman wins jury verdict, judgment for business client

Firm attorneys Mike Caddell, Cynthia Chapman, and Ben Wickert recently tried a case to a jury in the 430th District Court of Hidalgo County, Texas, as lead counsel on behalf of firm client Valley Builders Supply, Inc. The jury rendered a verdict of $93,528 in pecuniary damages, $1.8 million in reputation damages, and $10 million in exemplary damages as a result of defamatory statements made by defendant Innovative Block of South Texas, Ltd. The verdict resulted in a judgment in excess of $2 million (with much of the exemplary damages award capped by the Texas tort reform statute). The firm entered into a confidential settlement on the exemplary damages award, and the remainder of the judgment is on appeal before the 13th Court of Appeals of Texas.