This week, a civil jury approved a $15 million award for Deborah Fenton, a visitor at The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas who fell on wet glass at the Chandelier bar in 2021.
As reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which originally published the story, the ruling against the Cosmopolitan and its owner, MGM Resorts, consists of $12.3 million for forthcoming pain and suffering, $1.4 million for "previous physical pain, mental distress, suffering, anguish, disability, and loss of life's enjoyment," $976,614 for future healthcare costs, and $261,751 for past medical expenses.
Fenton, a Bakersfield, Calif. real estate agent, submitted the one-count negligence lawsuit on April 20, 2023. While it did not detail the injuries she sustained, her lawyers, the Ace Law Group, communicated to the R-J in a statement that the verdict "underlines the gravity of what our client experienced."
“We’re proud to have delivered justice for Ms. Fenton and grateful for the jury for their thoughtful and decisive verdict,” the statement read.
Inherited Responsibility
MGM Resorts did not possess the Cosmopolitan at the time Fenton fell and slipped. The company purchased it, for nearly $1.7 billion from the Blackstone Group, in 2022. Deutsche Bank acquired ownership in 2008 after the initial developers, 3700 Associates (a venture led by Ian Bruce Eichner), failed to meet a loan obligation during the financial crisis.
It remains uncertain if MGM plans to file an appeal. As a matter of policy, it refrains from commenting on legal actions taken against it.