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A California federal jury awarded Monster Energy Co. nearly $293 million and teed up possible enhanced and punitive damages Thursday after finding Bang Energy and its CEO Jack Owoc falsely advertised the "super creatine" ingredient of Bang energy drink, handing Monster a potentially record-breaking verdict following the monthlong trial.

A survey conducted by Monster Energy Co. found that it lost $271.9 million in profits since 2015 due to Vital Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s false advertising of an ingredient that's been dubbed super creatine.

The nine-person jury also found that Bang Energy and its CEO Jack Owoc acted willfully and deliberately in violating the federal Lanham Act by falsely advertising the health benefits of Bang. That decision puts both Bang and Owoc on the hook for possible enhanced damages, which could triple the award.

The verdict is a devastating blow to Vital, whose attorney acknowledged in court recently that an adverse outcome could push the company into bankruptcy. It's the second nine-figure court loss Vital suffered to Monster this year.

"We are grateful for the jury delivering what we believe is the largest Lanham Act jury trial award in U.S. history," John C. Hueston of Hueston Hennigan LLP, who represents Monster.

Moez M. Kaba of Hueston Hennigan told Law360 the purpose of the lawsuit was to "reveal that Vital Pharmaceuticals has been engaged in an at least seven-year long campaign of deception, and we believe that the jury's resounding verdict combined with the $185 million from our earlier case against Vital Pharmaceuticals — which totals about half a billion dollars in recovery — really sends that message once and for all. We're very proud of that and our whole team is really proud of that work."

Vital, Owoc and their counsel declined to comment.

The jury also ruled in Monster's favor on several state law claims, finding that VPX stole trade secrets and interfered with Monster's contracts over shelf space with some major retailers. The jury cleared Owoc of any liability on the contract claim, and he was not a defendant with respect to the trade secrets claim.

The jury awarded Monster $271,924,174 for the Lanham Act claim — the full amount Monster asked for — and awarded only slightly less than what Monster sought on the state law claims. Earlier in the week, Monster asked the jury for a total of $297 million.

Under the Lanham Act, the court can order disgorgement of ill-gotten profits as well as an award of treble damages, which is typically premised on a finding of willfulness. U.S. District Judge Jesus Bernal oversaw the trial and will rule on any enhanced damages and disgorgement at a later date.