On June 29, 2015, plaintiffs’ decedent Alik Khachikyan, 59, was discovered in the outdoor swimming pool of the Stocker Gardens apartment complex, in Glendale. He was visiting his daughter, Dazmira Khachikyan, who lived in the complex with her husband and children, when he fell in the pool. Alik Khachikyan was pronounced dead from drowning a short time later. The decedent’s widow, Aida Khojoyan, and four adult children, Dazmira Khachikyan, Arsen Khachikyan, Kristine Khachikyan and Lilit Khachikyan, sued the owner and operator of the building where the pool was located, 551 Stocker Garden Homeowners Association, which was erroneously sued as “Stocker Garden Homeowners Association.” The plaintiffs alleged that the homeowners association was negligent in its use and maintenance of the pool and that its negligence led to Alik Khachikyan’s death. The only witness to the incident was Dazmira Khachikyan’s son, who was 3.5 years old at the time. Dazmira testified that he saw his grandfather walking near the pool when his foot hit a potted agave plant, which caused Alik Khachikyan to fall into the pool and drown. However, Dazmira had difficulty remembering details of the event due to his age at the time. Plaintiffs’ counsel argued that the potted plant was an obstruction that violated Los Angeles County Building Code because it was within four feet of the pool. The plaintiffs’ building code and human-factors experts each opined that the plant was too close to the pool. The human-factors expert specifically opined that the plant represented a dangerous condition and that as a result, the pool would not have passed an inspection. Defense counsel admitted that the potted plant was present. However, counsel contended that the building code only applied to non-removable structures and that the subject plant in question was removable. Counsel also maintained that the pool was properly licensed and that it had passed all the required inspections. Defense counsel further maintained that the plant was open and obvious and, thus, was not a dangerous condition. Defense counsel also presented video of its experts walking alongside the pool, and contended that it was easy for the experts to avoid the plant. In addition, counsel argued that the decedent and his family would have been aware of the plant’s presence, as they had to walk past the plant in order to get to their cars. The defense’s safety and human factors expert and pool expert both testified that the building code was not violated and that the pool was safe. The pool expert also presented testimony and evidence showing that the pool had been inspected by the county and that there were no violations related to the potted plant. The defense’s expert child psychiatrist opined that child witnesses, such as Dazmira Khachikyan’s son, were not reliable. In addition, defense counsel noted that during cross-examination, Dazmira Khachikyan’s son admitted on the stand that his mother had told him to say that the decedent had hit his right foot on the plant. Plaintiff’s counsel countered that the plant was installed in 2011, but that the only county inspection document produced during discovery was from an inspection in 2009. According to plaintiff’s counsel, the defense introduced additional documents during its case in chief showing that the pool passed county inspections in the years after the installation of the plant. Plaintiff’s counsel objected to the introduction of those documents, but the court overruled the objections and allowed the records to be presented during trial., After Alik Khachikyan was discovered in the pool, emergency medical services was called to the scene to try to revive him. He was taken by ambulance to Adventist Health Glendale, but was pronounced dead later that day. The coroner determined that Khachikyan died from drowning. Khachikyan was 59 years old. He left behind his wife, Aida Khojoyan, who was 63 years old at the time; an adult son, Arsen Khachikyan, who was 35 years old at the time; and three adult daughters, Dazmira Khachikyan, who was 41 at the time, Lilit Khachikyan, who was 36 at time, and Kristine Khachikyan, who was 35 at the time. The decedent’s family sought recovery of non-economic wrongful death damages, including loss of support, loss of services, loss of companionship, and loss of guidance. Khojoyan also sought recovery of her late husband’s pension. The decedent’s children originally sought recovery of the lost pension, as well, but they ultimately dropped their economic damages claims. Defense counsel disputed the noneconomic damages claim, arguing that the decedent was not that close to his family. Counsel specifically noted that the decedent’s family had not presented any pictures of the decedent spending time with his wife and children. Counsel also argued that there was no documentary evidence of the decedent’s pension. The parties established a $1 million/$75,000 high/low agreement.