Greenfield Advisors worked with Texas family to reach $3 million award

SEATTLE – Greenfield Advisors, LLC is proud to be part of the team that helped a Texas family win a nearly $3 million verdict in April in what appears to be the first fracking trial in the United States.

The 5-1 verdict against Aruba Petroleum Inc. stated that the oil company “intentionally caused a private nuisance” that affected the health of the Parr family and ruined their drinking water. Bob and Lisa Parr’s daughter suffered nosebleeds, and Lisa dealt with welts, rashes, nausea, and other health issues. The Seattle-based firm Greenfield Advisors, LLC worked with the plaintiff quantifying the economic damages and aiding the Parr’s legal team in their effective jury presentation.

“Greenfield’s experience supporting complex environmental litigation was a perfect fit for the Parr case,” said Dr. John Kilpatrick, Greenfield’s Managing Director, who also served as a testifying expert. “Our team’s ability to bring analytical resources to bear on a variety of interlocking aspects of this case gave the legal team the tools they needed to win.”

The $2.925 million award stemmed from a 2011 lawsuit, which alleged that Aruba Petroleum Inc.’s 22 active wells near the Parr home from 2008–2011 caused the illnesses and damaged the family’s property values. Expert testimony by Dr. Kilpatrick was vital to helping attorney Brad Gilde, who represented the Parrs.

“Dr. Kilpatrick’s knowledge, skill, training, and education qualifies him as an expert in a field where his level of expertise is not shared by other experts on either side of the aisle,” Gilde said. “In short, he is a go-to expert and is tops in his field.”

The verdict on April 23 included $2 million for past physical pain and suffering by the Parr family, $250,000 for future physical pain and suffering, $400,000 for past mental anguish, and $275,000 for the lost market value of the property. Aruba Petroleum said they will appeal the verdict.

Dr. Kilpatrick noted, “We believe this will now set the standard for appraisers and economic analysts working on these cases nationwide.”

Aruba Petroleum was not the only company sued by the Parr family; however, many of the other companies have settled.

Greenfield Advisors is a 37-year-old financial services firm specializing in complex real estate problem solving. Best known for its work in high-profile litigation and trophy property valuation, Greenfield Advisors addresses a broad range of issues in its projects, including feasibility studies, market research, valuation, business plans, wealth-management and private-equity advisory services, and economic modeling.

Learn more about Greenfield Advisors by visiting www.greenfieldadvisors.com or
by calling 206-623-2935.

  ###