An Oregon jury ordered PacifiCorp to pay $305 million to 16 survivors of the 2020 Santiam Canyon wildfire. This award represents the largest verdict to date in an ongoing class-action lawsuit. The court previously found the Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary grossly negligent for its role in the 2020 Labor Day fires.
Total damages against the utility now exceed $1 billion. PacifiCorp also reached a separate $575 million settlement with the federal government last week. That agreement covers damages to public lands in Oregon and California caused by the same fires. These mounting legal and financial pressures represent a significant challenge for the Berkshire Hathaway unit.