At approximately 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 30, 2013, plaintiff Ana Vera, 62, a self-employed child caretaker, entered La Bodega Market at 1732 W. Highland Avenue, in San Bernardino, when it opened its doors for business. As Vera was walking through an aisle few minutes later, she suddenly slipped on a grape that was on the floor in the area. Vera’s left knee made contact with the concrete floor and she landed on the left side of her body. Vera subsequently injured her left knee in the fall. Vera sued the operator of La Bodega Market, La Bodega International Inc., and the company’s president, Ismael Miranda. Vera alleged the defendants failed to properly maintain the subject aisle, creating a dangerous condition. Vera asserted that there were several grapes on the floor in the aisle where she slipped and fell. However, an employee of La Bodega Market testified during his deposition that he saw only one grape on the floor in that area. The employee further testified that the market’s store closure policy included cleaning the various stations. Plaintiff’s counsel noted that Vera was the first patron to enter the market on the subject date. Based upon the facts presented by Vera and the employee, plaintiff’s counsel contended that La Bodega Market allowed a dangerous condition to remain on the store floor for more than eleven hours, as the store had been closed for eleven hours before opening at 8:30 a.m. The defendants stipulated to liability at the time of mediation., Vera was diagnosed with a fracture of the left knee’s patella. She was subsequently assisted by an employee of the market until paramedics arrived. Vera was then transported to the emergency room at Community Hospital of San Bernardino, where she was later discharged with a left knee immobilizer. Vera ultimately underwent an open reduction and internal fixation surgery of her left knee at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, in Colton, and then approximately four months of physical therapy. Vera claimed that she was left with a significant vertical scar over the prepatellar (kneecap) on the left knee. Her orthopedic surgeon recommended future surgical intervention to remove hardware from her left knee, as well as a total knee replacement at some point in the future. Thus, Vera sought recovery of $297,185.08 in total damages, including $73,385.08 in past medical costs, $211,800 in future medical costs, $12,000 in lost earnings. Defense counsel agreed that Vera’s were caused by the subject slip-and-fall incident. However, the defense’s medical expert disputed the need for a complete knee replacement and would have opined that Vera only required a partial knee replacement in the future.