Washington Supreme Court hears challenge to $230 million verdict against Providence Health

The Washington State Supreme Court heard oral argument in Naomi Bennett et al. v. Provident Health and Services on Tuesday, focusing on whether the trial court incorrectly granted classwide liability while excluding evidence critical to Providence’s defense and whether exemplary double damages were legally warranted. Counsel for Providence argued the trial court’s rulings produced a $230,000,000 judgment and violated summary-judgment standards.

“ The result was a $230,000,000 judgment,” said counsel for Providence, who listed four errors he said justified reversal. He told the court the trial court denied Providence a fair opportunity to present evidence to the jury and imposed punitive double damages despite compliance with collectively bargained agreements. Plaintiffs’ counsel responded that Providence sought a seismic change in Washington law and had not preserved some of its novel preemption defenses below.

The bench pressed both sides on whether contested evidence was excluded only as a discovery sanction or whether that exclusion affected the liability-phase summary-judgment rulings. Counsel for Providence said representative evidence and testimony about on-duty meal periods were improperly disregarded; plaintiffs’ counsel said the record lacked non-speculative proof that employees voluntarily waived meal breaks beyond a small set of written waivers. After extended questioning the court submitted the case for decision and recessed.