Case Background
Jan Svallingson and Anna Svallingson, individually and as successors-in-interest to their deceased daughter Lovisa Svallingson, along with Daniel Ramos, filed a complaint against the City and County of San Francisco, Rick Surya, Virgil Woods, and twenty-five unnamed Doe Defendants on August 31, 2022. The lawsuit arose from a motor vehicle versus pedestrian accident that took place on May 18, 2021, near the intersection of Polk Street and Hayes Street in San Francisco. Before filing the lawsuit, the Plaintiffs submitted written claims to the City and County of San Francisco under the Government Tort Claims Act, and the city denied those claims through a letter dated March 10, 2022. The Court later assigned the case for all purposes to Judge Anne-Christine Massullo in Department 206.
Cause
At around 6:59 p.m. on May 18, 2021, Lovisa Svallingson and Daniel Ramos were crossing Polk Street westbound inside a marked crosswalk. At the same time, Virgil Woods drove a Chevrolet Avalanche southbound on Polk Street. According to the complaint, Woods steered his vehicle into an unprotected bicycle lane on the west side of Polk Street and used it as a bypass route around traffic that had stopped at a red light. As Woods entered the intersection from the bike lane at a high rate of speed, his vehicle collided with a 2016 Audi A6 driven by Rick Surya, who was traveling westbound on Hayes Street. The impact sent the Avalanche into the air, causing it to roll over and strike Lovisa Svallingson and Daniel Ramos as they crossed the street.
Injury
Lovisa Svallingson died at the scene of the crash. Daniel Ramos suffered severe and catastrophic injuries. The complaint stated that his injuries affected his strength, health, and daily activity, and caused shock and injury to his body and nervous system, along with lasting mental pain, distress, and suffering.
Damages Sought
The Plaintiffs asked the Court for general non-economic damages, special economic damages, and incidental expenses tied to the accident. They also sought attorney's fees under California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1021.5, prejudgment interest, and costs of the lawsuit. Jan and Anna Svallingson sought compensation for the loss of their daughter's love, companionship, comfort, care, guidance, and financial support, along with funeral and burial expenses. Daniel Ramos sought compensation for his medical treatment, lost income, and ongoing pain and suffering.
Key Arguments and Proceedings
Legal Representation
Plaintiff(s): Jan Svallingson | Anna Svallingson | Daniel Ramos
· Counsel for Plaintiff(s): Paul A. Matiasic | Craig N. Rosler | Vaheh Manoukian
Defendant(s): City and County of San Francisco, Rick Surya, and Virgil Woods
· Counsel for Defendant(s): Samuel A. Leff | Sabrina M. Berdux | Rebecca Louie represented the City and County of San Francisco. Paul A. Bigley | Jason C. Dineros | Nathaniel L. Dunn represented Rick Surya | Rory D. Leos represented Virgil Woods | David A. Poull later associated as additional counsel of record for Woods in March 2026, with Leos continuing as co-counsel.
Key Arguments or Remarks by Counsel
Claims
The Plaintiffs brought three causes of action. The first claim, for dangerous condition of public property, targeted the City and County of San Francisco and unnamed Doe Defendants. The complaint alleged that the intersection contained several hazards, including an unprotected bike lane that drivers used as a traffic bypass, the lack of a protected intersection, missing pedestrian safety measures, a missing advance limit line, poor traffic signal timing, damaged striping from prior utility work, inadequate maintenance, and insufficient warning signage. The Plaintiffs claimed the city both created these conditions and had notice of them long enough to fix them but failed to do so.
The second claim, for negligence, named Rick Surya, Virgil Woods, and the Doe Defendants. The Plaintiffs alleged that both drivers operated their vehicles recklessly and carelessly, leading to the collision that killed Lovisa Svallingson and injured Daniel Ramos.
The third claim, for wrongful death, named all Defendants and sought damages for the loss of love, affection, companionship, financial support, and other benefits the Plaintiffs would have received from Lovisa Svallingson.
Defense
Rick Surya filed his answer to the complaint on April 4, 2023, denying all the allegations against him. He raised twelve affirmative defenses. These included comparative negligence, arguing that the Plaintiffs' own carelessness contributed to the accident, and assumption of risk, claiming the Plaintiffs knowingly accepted the dangers described in the complaint. Surya also argued that the complaint failed to state a valid claim, that the Plaintiffs failed to mitigate their damages, and that any liability should be limited to his actual percentage of fault. He further claimed that the accident resulted from the independent and superseding acts of third parties rather than his own conduct, and that the claims were barred by the statute of limitations under Code of Civil Procedure Sections 335.1 and 338. Additional defenses included laches, based on the argument that the Plaintiffs' delay in filing and serving the complaint caused a loss of evidence, and a reservation of the right to raise further defenses if discovery revealed new information.
Jury Verdict
The jury returned its special verdict on May 28, 2025, and the Court filed it on May 29, 2025. The jury found that Virgil Woods acted negligently and that his negligence was a substantial factor in causing harm to the Plaintiffs. The jury found that Rick Surya was not negligent. The jury also found that the City and County of San Francisco owned or controlled the property at the intersection but determined that the property was not in a dangerous condition at the time of the incident.
The jury awarded Jan and Anna Svallingson joint economic damages of $17,000, past non-economic damages of $400,000, and future non-economic damages of $1,600,000. For Daniel Ramos, the jury awarded past medical expenses of $753,102.35, future medical expenses of $450,000, past wage loss of $375,000, future wage loss of $140,000, past non-economic damages of $2,500,000, and future non-economic damages of $500,000, bringing his total award to $4,718,102.35.
The jury assigned one hundred percent of the fault to Virgil Woods and zero percent each to Rick Surya and the City and County of San Francisco. The presiding juror signed the verdict form on May 28, 2025.
Court documents are available upon request at [email protected]
