Goldasich, Vick & Fulk obtained a $70,000,000 Verdict Against Tyson Farms, Inc. and HydraService, Inc.

Attorneys Dennis Goldasich, Josh Vick, and William McCartney of Goldasich, Vick & Fulk recently obtained a $70,000,000 verdict against Tyson Farms, Inc. and HydraService, Inc. at the close of a four-week trial in Walker County, Alabama.

The case, which was litigated for more than six years, involved an environmental exposure claim filed on behalf of a boat repairman who developed flesh-eating bacteria following a release of approximately 220,000 gallons of chicken rendering wastewater into the Black Warrior River. The wastewater release occurred in June 2019 at Tyson Farms’ River Valley Ingredients Plant in Hanceville, Alabama.

The plaintiff, Mark Griffin, suffered permanent injuries as a result of the spill. He was hospitalized for approximately 80 days, underwent multiple extensive surgeries, and almost seven years later he still suffers from an open wound and incurable osteomyelitis of the hips and pelvis. Those conditions are permanent and will significantly limit his day-to-day activities for the remainder of his life.

This was an extremely hard-fought case that was litigated for 6 years. The trial lasted 4 weeks and involved 19 witnesses (including 9 expert witnesses). The two defendants were represented by a total of 12 attorneys plus support staff for the entirety of the trial.

The verdict has been featured by several news outlets including Yahoo News, Yahoo Finance, AL.com, The Arkansas Democrat Gazette, WBRC, WVUA, KNWA, WVTM. Links to the stories run by WBRC and WVTM are included below:

WVTM 13
https://www.wvtm13.com/article/walker-county-lawsuit-tyson-farms/70968393

WBRC
https://www.wbrc.com/2026/03/30/walker-county-jury-awards-70m-verdict-over-2019-wastewater-spill/