A Los Angeles County Superior Court jury in Van Nuys reached the punitive damages phase of *Iskander v. Grossman et al.* on June 10, 2026, ordering defendant Rebecca Grossman to pay $21 million and co-defendant Scott Erickson to pay $1.17 million in punitive damages [1][2]. The underlying compensatory verdict, returned the prior week on June 3, 2026, had already assessed $176 million against both defendants for the deaths of brothers Mark Iskander, age 11, and Jacob Iskander, age 8, who were struck and killed in a Westlake Village crosswalk in 2020 [1][3]. Plaintiffs Nancy Iskander, Karim Iskander, and Zachary Iskander brought claims sounding in wrongful death and negligence, with the punitive phase predicated on findings of malice and oppression [2][3].
The jury's punitive award brought the combined total to approximately $198 million, making this one of the largest wrongful death civil verdicts in California history [1][2]. Plaintiff counsel Brian Panish of Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP led the trial for the Iskander family [3]. The civil proceedings unfolded in parallel with a separate criminal case in which Grossman had previously been convicted of murder in connection with the same 2020 incident, a posture that informed the malice finding underlying the punitive phase [1][2].
Punitive damages in California civil cases are governed by constitutional proportionality review and are subject to reduction on post-trial motion or appeal. Given the magnitude of the combined award and the existence of a prior criminal conviction, post-trial challenges to the punitive component, including arguments under *BMW of North America, Inc. v. Gore* and its progeny, are anticipated [2][3]. Defense counsel Esther Holm has not yet entered a public record of specific post-trial motions as of the verdict date.
The case was tried before Judge Huey P. Cotton of the Los Angeles County Superior Court, Van Nuys Division [1].