Scott's Marina at Lake Grapevine Ltd. v. Brown, 365 S.W.3d 146

Brown, employed weekends at the Store (leased to JFF, owned by Scott’s Marina) in summer 2005, cleans up backflow spills from a Pepsi fountain hub drain.
June 11, 2005: backflow spills during store shift; Brown cleans with mop and bucket with no protective gear.
June 18, 2005: additional backflow spills; more cleanup with assistance from two coworkers; plumbers later install backflow valves.
Brown develops cough, sore throat, swollen neck glands; later severe vomiting and diarrhea leading to hospitalization.
July 5–11, 2005: hospital treated for enteroviral meningitis and Lemierre’s Syndrome; illness and emotional issues persist.
Brown sues Scott’s Marina, JFF, and the Store for exposure to sewage containing human feces; jury verdict assigns fault 60% Scott’s Marina, 20% JFF, 20% Store and awards damages totaling over $676,800 plus costs; Appellants appeal on multiple grounds including causation and admissibility of expert Brook; Court affirms.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of exposure evidence to support backflow contained human feces	Brook relies on Brown’s exposure to sewage; jury resolved plumbing config and backflow facts	Evidence shows alternate plumbing configuration and no direct proof sewage contained feces	Evidence sufficient to imply sewage with human feces exposed Brown
Admissibility/reliability of Brook's causation testimony	Brook’s testimony linked exposure to enteroviral infection and Lemierre’s Syndrome	Brook relied on assumptions without testing the spillage; reliability contested	Brook’s testimony deemed reliable for jury to consider causation
Causation: whether exposure caused Brown’s illnesses beyond mere speculation	Evidence supports a causal chain from exposure to infection to Lemierre’s Syndrome	Probabilistic link insufficient; other causes not adequately ruled out	Sufficient causation evidence to support verdict
Damages: sufficiency of awards for past and future medical expenses, lost earnings, and pain/mental anguish	Damages supported by evidence of past/future impact and Brown’s earning capacity	Some damages speculative or excessive	Damages findings substantiated by the record; no reversal warranted

City of Keller v. Wilson, 168 S.W.3d 802 (Tex.2005) (legal-sufficiency review; credence to favorable evidence; weigh conflicting evidence)
Cain v. Bain, 709 S.W.2d 175 (Tex.1986) (factual sufficiency standard; define weight of evidence review)
Transcon. Ins. Co. v. Crump, 330 S.W.3d 211 (Tex.2010) (flexible reliability assessment for expert testimony)
Havner v. E-Z Mart Stores, 953 S.W.2d 706 (Tex.1997) (epidemiological evidence when proving causation; reliability of expert link)
Jelinek v. Casas, 328 S.W.3d 526 (Tex.2010) (expert causation must show why inferences are medically preferable)