Jury delivers $5B verdict in case against Las Vegas-based water company

A jury delivered another multibillion-dollar verdict Wednesday against the bottled water company Real Water, which was tied to an outbreak of liver failure in Southern Nevada.

A 12-day trial ended with a jury delivering the $5 billion verdict against Real Water, according to defense attorney William Kemp, who said he helped represent 15 plaintiffs during the proceedings. In June, a separate trial ended with a jury delivering a $3 billion verdict against the company.

Kemp said defense attorneys attempted to settle the most recent case for about $6.9 million, but Real Water’s insurance company wanted to move forward with a trial. He said he expects the insurance company to fight paying the recently awarded damages because Real Water has filed for bankruptcy.

In addition to $5 billion in punitive damages, the jury awarded about $230 million in compensatory damages, plus damages for medical bills, future expenses and wages lost, Kemp said.

An attorney for Real Water did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.

Real Water faced multiple lawsuits after its product, which contained a toxic chemical used in rocket fuel, was tied to an outbreak of liver illness and at least one death.

The company behind Real Water, Affinitylifestyles.com Inc., was based in Las Vegas since 1998 and promoted its product as “the healthiest drinking water available.”

In February, a jury awarded about $130 million in damages to five people who sued the company, and a jury in October 2023 awarded more than $228 million in total damages in a separate case.

Kemp said he is representing 62 plaintiffs across the multiple lawsuits. Another trial is set to go forward in February.

Plaintiffs in the most recent case said they were hospitalized with liver disease and liver failure after drinking Real Water. Hunter Brown, the case’s lead plaintiff, was hospitalized for the toxic liver disease acute hepatitis, according to court documents.

Another plaintiff was hospitalized three times in November 2020 at Spring Valley Hospital after drinking Real Water, according to the lawsuit. Two years earlier, plaintiff Steven Wadkins was hospitalized in Henderson and was in a coma for three days, the lawsuit said.

Kemp said he was surprised that a settlement could not be reached after the three prior verdicts with substantial damages.

“I think the juries are clearly troubled by what Real Water has done,” he said.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.