The panel also declined Carolina Beverage’s request for a new trial on the breach claims to pursue alternative damages, noting the plaintiff “intentionally presented the jury with a stark choice — award us the $2 million termination payment or award us nothing.”
“Carolina Beverage is not entitled to revisit its strategy and obtain a second bite at the apple now that we have rejected as unviable the sole legal theory it decided to prosecute,” the justices said.
The panel vacated the lower court’s award of $4.3 million in attorney fees for the plaintiff and remanded the case for further proceedings regarding the fees.
In a statement, Fiji Water Co. LLC’s general counsel, Craig Cooper, said the Court of Appeal affirmed that direct sales under its contract with Carolina Beverage Corp. were permissible and that Fiji Water acted within its legal rights.
“In fact, Carolina now owes Fiji Water for legal fees and costs,” Cooper said. “The appellate court ruled that no constructive termination occurred as a matter of law and that Carolina could not claim the contract’s termination fee as damages. If Carolina chooses to appeal to the California Supreme Court, we will continue to present our case and expect that court to also rule in our favor.”
