A civil suit arising out of the “deliberated” killing of a well-respected American war correspondent illustrates that valuation and damages issues play a critical role in most litigation. The loss of income analysis in this case will be of particular interest to appraisers specializing in personal injury cases.
Marie Colvin was an acclaimed American war journalist who worked for over 25 years for the British paper, The Sunday Times. In February 2012, Colvin, who was a special target of the Syrian government, was killed in a concerted artillery attack in the Syrian city of Homs. Afterwards, members of the Syrian military and intelligence celebrated. Based on evidence, they said: “Marie Colvin was a dog and now she’s dead. Let the Americans help her now.”
Colvin’s youngest sister, Cathleen, and Colvin’s niece and nephew sued the Syrian government under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), alleging the reporter’s death was an extrajudicial killing. The plaintiffs sought damages under two legal theories: wrongful death and emotional distress. The court found there was copious evidence (almost 1,000 pages of exhibits, detailed affidavits, declarations, and expert reports) to support a finding that Colvin was the victim of a “deliberated killing” by the Syrian government.
Under the wrongful death theory, all plaintiffs were entitled to monetary damages for the loss of prospective income, benefits, and retirement pay as shown by a reasonable estimate from an expert that was based on well-founded assumptions. The plaintiffs’ damages expert was highly qualified, the court noted. She held a Ph.D. in economics and had worked in valuation for over 10 years, participating in “hundreds of valuation-related projects around the world.” The testimony met the requirements of federal rule of evidence 702, the court found.
To calculate the economic loss resulting from the reporter’s premature death, the expert decided to take a conservative view. In determining the expected income, the expert did not include professional earnings beyond Colvin’s employment with The Sunday Times, believing “it was not possible” to quantify with “a reasonable degree of certainty” any future book deals or film contracts that Marie Colvin could have received.
The expert also adjusted the total amount of lost wages for the risk inherent in the journalist’s job (“probability of survival”) and the time value of money and found the economic loss was $2.37 million. The court credited the expert’s opinion but said that, under the relevant case law, the calculation had to be adjusted for consumption costs. Therefore, the court asked for an updated expert report before making a final determination as to the exact amount of loss of income.
The court also awarded Colvin’s sister $2.5 million to compensate for the pain and suffering resulting from the journalist’s death, and it awarded punitive damages of $300 million. However, this is a default judgment against the Syrian government. How much of the award the plaintiffs will ever see remains unclear.
A digest of Colvin v. Syrian Arab Republic, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14641 (Jan. 30, 2019), and the court’s opinion will be available soon at BVLaw.
Extra: A well-received movie based on Marie Colvin’s life came out in 2018. It’s called A Private War.