Kabateck LLP managing partner Shant Karnikian was quoted in Lookout Santa Cruz this week discussing the firm’s pursuit of damages “in the hundreds of thousands of dollars per household” for more than 1,000 flood victims from the devastating 2023 winter storms in Santa Cruz County’s Pajaro Valley.
The mass tort litigation targets multiple government agencies, including Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, the City of Watsonville, and the State of California, alleging they failed to address known infrastructure problems that led to catastrophic flooding.
The floods began with New Year’s Eve storms in Watsonville and culminated in the catastrophic breach of the Pajaro River levee on March 11, 2023. The lawsuits claim government agencies knew or should have known about the levee’s instability and watershed infrastructure that had fallen into “unprecedented disrepair.”
Karnikian said he hopes to set a trial date by the end of this year, with proceedings likely beginning in 2026. The case represents one of the largest mass tort litigations in recent Santa Cruz County history.
Speaking to Lookout Santa Cruz, Karnikian explained the scope of the litigation: “What we want to see is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars per household.” The firm is representing victims in what Karnikian hopes will go to trial in 2026, making it one of the largest mass tort litigations in recent Santa Cruz County history.