Oregon wineries' lawsuit against PacifiCorp moves forward on negligence claim in wake of 2020 wildfires

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – After a Lane County circuit court judge denied PacifiCorp's motion to dismiss negligence and gross negligence claims in December, a Willamette Valley winery is hoping to send a message of accountability to utility companies and lawmakers after the devastating Labor Day fires in 2020.

Brigadoon Vineyards LLC filed their lawsuit in June 2023 as the case now moves forward on the negligence charges against Pacific Power and its parent company PacifiCorp.

The winery argues that it is a victim of the Oregon Labor Day fires in Santiam, Echo Mountain, Archie Creek Complex, 242, and South Obenchain in 2020 as a result of PacifiCorp's electrical system failures -- leading to smoke particles tainting the winery's grapes, damaging wine production, and sales, the suit alleges.

According to court documents, Brigadoon Vineyards says PacifiCorp did not shut off power despite warnings from the National Weather Service and Oregon officials that a “historic red-flag-warning weather event would occur, producing catastrophic winds in excess of 50 mph, and hot dry air that was likely to cause electrical system failures that would cause dangerous fires.”

Brigadoon Vineyards furthers that they were unable to sell its wines to the public at the regular price, or not at all, and claims they lost retail shelf spaces and suffered reputational damage, according to court documents, which note it will take five to seven years to rebuild its lost shelf space after the fires.

The company is one of several wineries, including Willamette Valley Vineyards, suing PacifiCorp for damages from the Labor Day fires.

"Our grapes were just in the process of ripening at that time. And so many of the growers in the wineries were not able to use significant amount of fruit that they had grown," said Jim Bernau, founder and CEO of Willamette Valley Vineyards.

The lawsuit alleges “PacifiCorp refused to turn off its power for one reason, and one reason only: PacifiCorp wanted to sell electricity and avoid costs associated with shutting off power, thereby maximizing money to upstream its profits to its out-of-state parent company, Berkshire Hathaway Energy. PacifiCorp chose profits over safety.”

Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that PacifiCorp failed to maintain vegetation that could fall onto electrical lines in red flag warning events that could ignite fires.

In favor of PacifiCorp, Judge Velure granted a motion from the utility company to dismiss an inverse condemnation claim -- an action brought by landowners against governments to recover damages when property is taken, explained Robert Julian of Baker & Hostetler, an attorney representing Brigadoon Vineyards LLC.

In a statement, PacifiCorp said, "Recent rulings in cases related to litigation brought by Oregon wineries were favorable to PacifiCorp, rejecting key pillars of Plaintiffs’ claims.  For example, in the Brigadoon case, the Court recognized that California-style inverse condemnation has no place in Oregon.  Unsurprisingly, the Courts in other cases expressed significant doubts about the strength of Plaintiffs’ claims. Whether these cases are ultimately dismissed by a Court or rejected by a jury, the wineries’ smoke damage claims are baseless."

PacifiCorp went on to say that its "ability to provide essential services is being threatened by spurious lawsuits like these and excessive wildfire damages pursued by out-of-state plaintiff attorneys who have a substantial financial stake in these outcomes."

The company added, "With respect to the settlement agreements in Douglas County, PacifiCorp has resolved and will continue to resolve all reasonable claims."

Julian says dozens of other wineries are signing up to file complaints against the utility company.

“I think this is not going to be a close call, in my mind, and no wonder that the wineries are calling us day by day trying to sign up," Julian said.

Following this case, he says there should be several rules put in place for Oregon utility companies and government agencies.

“When a government official -- indeed, the state fire chief for the whole state -- tells the utility that there's a high danger they're going to start fires unless they turn off the power, the utility should listen to that and do it or they're going to end up paying double damages or punitive damages on the basis of their willfulness," Julian said.

He added, "When you get those high winds on the ridges, and you haven't replaced your old equipment, you got to turn off the power, whether or not the fire chief tells you to do so.”

Julian furthered, “It boggles the mind that they had an opportunity to turn off the power and didn't do it.”

Moving forward, he says “the legislature in Oregon should authorize enough money and compel the state agencies to investigate the cause of the fire and issue the report within six months. The only reports we have in the 2020 fires are in Douglas County. They're not a single report in northern Oregon.”

PacifiCorp was previously deemed negligent in the wildfires, due to the company’s failure to cut down power lines during the windstorm beforehand, when in June of 2023, a Multnomah County jury awarded more than $90 million to 17 victims of the incident that ended in nine deaths and 1,875 square miles of devastated land — and PacifiCorp could owe more to others who are eligible for punitive damages.

Those involved in the suits say they're hopeful to work with PacifiCorp on an outcome that helps everyone.

"(We) are encouraged by their most recent actions to make the community whole," Bernau said.

If these cases do move forward to trial rather than settlements, attorneys say those will likely be slated for early 2025.