Edison Hit With Lawsuits Over Devastating Eaton Fire in Los Angeles

The first lawsuits were filed against Southern California Edison over one of the Los Angeles wildfires, which have destroyed more than 10,000 structures and killed 24 people.

Both suits, filed on Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court, allege Southern California Edison and its parent company, Edison International, failed to prepare for the predicted Santa Ana winds by not de-energizing all their transmission towers and clearing vegetation near Eaton Canyon, where a wildfire has devastated the Altadena area north of Pasadena.

Both lawsuits seek punitive damages.

One suit—brought by Altadena resident Evangeline Iglesias, a FedEx worker whose home she lived in for 25 years was burned to the ground—accuses Edison of negligence and public nuisance, among other things.

“There is clear evidence from video footage, photographs, and witness accounts that the fire was caused by electrical equipment operated by defendants Edison International and Southern California Edison,” the plaintiffs alleged in the complaint, which was filed by Edelson partners Ali Moghaddas, Todd Logan and Brandt Silver-Korn. “SCE had a duty to properly maintain and operate its electrical infrastructure, yet it failed to do so.”

The complaint includes a photo of the base of a neighborhood transmission tower in flames minutes after the Eaton fire ignited. Edison paid billions of dollars over wildfires before, including those in 2017 and 2018 in Southern California.

“Like in those previous fires, SCE had choices here,” the plaintiffs alleged in that complaint. “It again chose the path that put Californians at risk—and again, caused untold destruction to Californians’ homes and cost lives.”

The second suit, filed by Michael Richard Kreiner and the Kreiner Family Trust, owners and renters of various properties, makes similar allegations.

“This wildfire was not the result of an ‘act of God’ or other force majeure,” the plaintiffs alleged in the second complaint. “This wildfire was started by sparks from high-voltage transmission lines, distribution lines, appurtenances, and other electrical equipment within Edison’s utility infrastructure that ignited surrounding vegetation.”

San Diego’s Singleton Schriber partners Gerald Singleton and Paul Starita, and senior counsel Jon Cadieux, filed the suit with Todd Becker, of Becker Law Group in Pasadena, and Patrick McNicholas and Matthew McNicholas of McNicholas & McNicholas in Los Angeles.

“In my decades of experience handling wildfire litigation, the Eaton Fire is among the most devastating and heart-wrenching cases I’ve seen,” Patrick McNicholas said. “This goes beyond a failure of responsibility—it is gross negligence in an area highly vulnerable to wildfires, especially with well-documented weather alerts and high wind risks. We are committed to holding Southern California Edison accountable for their alleged negligence and to seeking justice for victims who have lost their homes, livelihoods and loved ones.”

‘Never Seen Such a High Burndown Rate’

Lawyers already are getting calls about potential lawsuits, which also could include the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, the utility in the Pacific Palisades, where another wildfire decimated the Western region and is prompting evacuations in Brentwood and some areas of the San Fernando Valley. JP Morgan has estimated damages from the wildfires to exceed $50 billion.

“Our hearts remain with our communities during the devastating fires in Southern California, and we remain committed to supporting them through this difficult time,” Edison spokesperson Gabriela Ornelas told Law.com. “SCE crews contractors and mutual assistance partners are dedicated to safely restoring power to our customers.”

She noted that Southern California Edison has not yet been served with the lawsuits.

“The cause of the fire continues to be under investigation,” she added. “We will review all information made available to us as part of our investigation.”

The firms are no strangers to wildfire litigation.

Both firms represented victims of previous wildfires in a $13.5 billion settlement with Pacific Gas & Electric in Northern California.

McNicholas & McNicholas and the other firms in the second suit have met with more than 500 victims so far, 95% of whom have had “complete burndowns.”

“In the dozens of wildfire cases we’ve handled, we have never seen such a high burndown rate,” McNicholas said. “The toll of the Eaton Fire is staggering, displacing families and devastating entire communities.”

Edelson, based in Chicago, has spearheaded trials over Oregon’s series of wildfires in 2020, obtaining $200 million in verdicts against Pacific Power and its parent company, PacifiCorp. More trials are expected later this year.

On Thursday, Edelson also set up an online brochure at www.lafireattorneys.com to assist residents on what to do.

Moghaddas, who is located in Los Angeles and evacuated his own home last week, joined the firm in November. A former federal prosecutor, he led the Los Angeles criminal prosecution of Tom Girardi, who was convicted last year by a federal jury on Aug. 27 on wire fraud charges of stealing millions of dollars from his clients. On Jan. 7, the day the Eaton fire broke out, Girardi, 85, was transported to the federal medical center in Butner, North Carolina, for a mental examination ahead of his sentencing.

Note: Bronstad is an Edison customer impacted by the Eaton fire.