A woman has decided to file a lawsuit against Costco after being badly injured at their store in Santa Rosa. On March 22, 2025, the incident was recorded. The lawsuit states that Novotny, the woman who was hurt, claims a big display fell on her, leading to major injuries such as brain trauma.
Sadie Novotny went to the Costco store located at 1900 Santa Rosa Avenue. As she was in the store, a big and heavy display cabinet collapsed on her. In the lawsuit, it was mentioned that the object’s legs were thin, and it sat on a faulty wooden pallet. The tipped-over tree kept her from being able to get up. According to Novotny’s lawyers, the head injury was severe as a result of the accident. She was taken to a hospital, and after tests, she found out she had a severe brain injury.
On April 29, 2025, Appellant Novotny filed the lawsuit in the Alameda County Superior Court. Costco’s actions are said to have caused the accident because they acted carelessly. Charges of premises liability and product liability are also part of this law. This means that Novotny claims Costco should have made the store safe, and it also added and arranged the display. She has requested approximately $14 million to compensate for the losses she claims in the case. The funds would assist in paying for her medical bills, future care, drop in income, and mental and physical pain.
It is written in the documents that the item that fell was either a cabinet or a bar display. Because it was large, heavy, and unstable, it was very dangerous. According to Novotny, it was not appropriate to put it in that position. Her team of lawyers says that Costco had no excuse since it should have seen the danger.
Even though the incident took place in Santa Rosa and the case was started in Alameda County, it does not have to stay there. On June 5, Costco’s representatives filed a motion to have the case dealt with at the federal court level. They want the court to handle the case in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, in San Francisco. They say that since Costco is headquartered in Washington, it is allowed to serve in this way. The federal court can hear cases where one or more of the parties involved comes from a different state.
Experts are unclear about why Novotny’s lawyers opted to sue in Alameda, a county that is not close to Santa Rosa. A review of the policy may happen as the case moves ahead.
The trial will be heard on 22 September 2025, according to the court. Afterwards, the lawyers on both sides will share new facts, and the judge decides how to proceed. Moving the case to federal court requires following other rules than the ones from state court. It could change the speed of the case and how people are chosen for the jury panel.
For the time being, Costco has made no public remarks about the situation. The company usually does not speak about ongoing issues in court. Costco has put forward a good defense, as the court documents prove. The defense will likely state that the display did not cause any serious harm and that Novotny’s injuries were not as bad as he claimed.
This case points to the main issue of keeping customers safe in large retail stores. Warehouse stores such as Costco often put goods on tall shelves and use big displays. If appropriate safety measures aren’t used, these displays can accidentally collapse and hurt people. There could be new safety measures developed at Costco and other stores as a consequence of this case.
