Nevada jury hands $5.2 billion verdict against Vegas company in bottled water liver damage lawsuit

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A jury in Nevada has delivered a $5.2 billion award in the latest large-sum civil lawsuit against a former Las Vegas-based bottled water company found responsible for causing liver damage in customers in 2021. The verdict came Wednesday in the negligence and product liability trial of AffinityLifestyles.com and its Real Water brand. Attorney Will Kemp, representing several plaintiffs in this and other cases, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal the company has filed for bankruptcy. The company was headed by Brent Jones, a Republican Nevada state Assembly member from 2016 to 2018. Jones and attorneys for the company didn’t respond to emails seeking comment. Other juries have delivered verdicts totaling almost $3.4 billion in three previous trials against the company.