On Aug. 5, 2011, plaintiff Margo Halgren, an 86-year-old retired woman, found her two bedroom, two bathroom mobile home flooded with raw sewage that had come out of the home’s two toilets and two showers. Halgren sued the owners of the mobile home park in Rancho Cucamonga where she resided. The defendants initially included Downey Enterprises, LLC; Downey Enterprises California; HH Downey Inc., doing business as Casa Volante Mobile Home Estates; and the main shareholder/owner of HH Downey, Brad Downey. However, Downey and the companies of Downey Enterprises, LLC and Downey Enterprises California were ultimately let out of the case. Thus, the matter continued against HH Downey only. Halgren alleged that HH Downey was negligent in maintenance of the mobile home park’s sewer lines, and that this negligence constituted a violation of the California Mobile Home Residency Law and a breach of the implied warranty of habitability. Halgren claimed that the mobile home park’s sewer line was blocked, causing the raw sewage to flood her mobile home. Thus, she contended that the park’s sewer pipes were not being maintained and that HH Downey should have had a regular maintenance/cleaning basis. According to counsel for HH Downey, the court allowed plaintiff’s counsel to call one plumbing expert to testify despite the fact that he was not listed on the plaintiff’s witness list, nor was he disclosed in discovery or the designation of expert witnesses. HH Downey’s counsel added that the court also allowed testimony about an unrelated incident that occurred more than 2.5 years before the subject date of loss, where the “cause” was never determined. Thus, counsel contended these allowances resulted in severe prejudice to HH Downey. The defense’s forensic plumbing contractor testified at trial that there was never any evidence that the “pipes” weren’t maintained and/or that the blockage had anything to do with maintenance or lack thereof. Counsel for HH Downey noted that even the plumber that Halgren hired to come to the scene on the date of loss, who was retained by HH Downey’s counsel, testified that there was no evidence that the mobile home park did anything wrong and opined that the incident was probably caused by Halgren flushing cleaning wipes down the line. Counsel also noted that there was testimony that Halgren’s boyfriend cut off and covered over the sewer “clean-out,” which then caused the sewer water to back up in the mobile home rather than escape out of the clean out. In addition, HH Downey’s counsel noted that Halgren had never had a plumbing problem in the 17 years she lived at the park, and no problems since the incident. Accordingly, counsel asserted that there was no need for any repairs to the sewer line., Sewage flooded Halgren’s mobile home, and seeped under the floors, into the walls and into the ventilation system. Halgren estimated the costs to repair the whole mobile home, which was 40 years old, to be around $20,000. She also sought recovery of damages for her emotional distress. Counsel for HH Downey noted that Halgren presented no evidence of economic damages, and that Halgren testified that her mobile home was cleaned and sanitized the next day. Counsel also noted that Halgren stated that she stayed in her mobile home for a week after the incident, until her son moved her in with him. In addition, HH Downey’s counsel noted that when Halgren’s son, a contractor, was asked if there was anything preventing him from making the repairs his mother wished to have done and that he responded “No.” The defense’s forensic plumbing expert estimated the costs to repair Halgren’s mobile home to be between $2,500 and $3,000. Thus, HH Downey’s counsel argued that Halgren had rental property income of $4,500 per month, which Halgren testified to, and could afford to make the repairs, but failed to do so.