Chris Brown Housekeeper Accepts Reduced $9.5 Million Settlement Following Dog Attack Lawsuit Verdict
A housekeeper involved in a civil lawsuit against singer Chris Brown has agreed to accept a reduced damages award of $9.5 million following a dog attack at his California home. The decision comes after Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Huey P. Cotton ruled that the jury's initial multi-million dollar award was excessive and lacked sufficient evidentiary support.
According to reporting originally published by Hollywood Unlocked, singer Chris Brown and his legal team have secured a reduction in a civil lawsuit stemming from a domestic dog attack at his California residence. The plaintiff, Maria Avila, has agreed to accept a reduced damages payout of $9.5 million after Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Huey P. Cotton concluded that an earlier jury award exceeding $13 million was excessive. The legal dispute dates back to April 2021, when housekeeper Patricia Avila filed a lawsuit detailing an incident involving her sister, Maria Avila.
According to court filings referenced in media reports, Brown had hired the sisters to clean his property in Tarzana, California, for a rate of $600 per day twice a week. The lawsuit noted that while the workers were aware of dogs on the property, the animals were typically secured in a separate designated section during working hours. However, the filing alleged that on one occasion, a Caucasian Shepherd Ovcharka weighing between 110 and 220 pounds entered the backyard where Maria Avila was working.
According to Patricia Avila's account detailed in legal filings, the dog attacked Maria Avila, biting her arm and tearing three to four inches of skin before biting her face and legs. Patricia Avila reported that she intervened to free her sister from the animal, which she alleged had a prior history of aggressive behavior, and expressed concern at the time that her sister might succumb to severe blood loss. The legal proceedings experienced initial delays.
According to reporting by Rolling Stone cited in media updates, an initial trial declared a mistrial on June 16 after one day of testimony when a juror conducted independent research about the case and shared information with fellow jurors. Following a subsequent retrial roughly two weeks later, jurors found Brown and his business entity, Black Pyramid LLC, liable for negligence. In that ruling on June 30, as reported by Billboard, the jury awarded Maria Avila $12.9 million in damages. Additionally, the jury awarded Patricia Avila $885,000 for emotional distress