A woman who was burned when the lid popped off her 20-ounce Venti Pike Place Roast in a Starbucks drive-thru has been awarded $100,000 by a jury in Florida. Eater reported the news off a release from the plaintiff’s legal firm. The incident occurred in Jacksonville, Fla., in 2014, and the case was filed in 2015. The 43-year-old woman suffered first- and second-degree burns when the 190-degree beverage spilled in her lap. The law firm’s release noted that a Starbucks rep testified that the Seattle-based coffee giant “gets 80 complaints a month about lid leaks and lids popping off” and that the company argued during trial that it “would not be relevant” to warn customers of the risk. “My client didn’t want sympathy from the jury — she wanted justice — and the jury gave it to her with its verdict,” Morgan & Morgan attorney Steve Earle said. Starbucks told Eater it may appeal, adding that the company stands behind its employees, maintaining “that they did nothing wrong.”
