Season 4 – Episode 7 ·

Take That Elon! $60M Verdict Against Tesla with Lee Christie and Karen Zahka  

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Join Rahul and Ben for their discussion with Indiana trial lawyer Lee Christie and Trial Lawyers for Justice Attorney, Karen Zahka, as they break down their recent trial against Tesla. Although the case started out as a simple pickup truck vs. motorcycle accident involving a left turn, the personal involvement of Elon Musk led to an unusual investment of resources on the defense side and high drama in the courtroom.

Animated reconstruction of the collision.

To get to verdict, the plaintiff had to navigate a series of landmines and obstacles, including numerous law firms entering and exiting the case, a sea of motions, dozens of requests for mistrial and a hold-out juror that almost led to a mistrial during jury deliberations.

About
Lee Christie

Photo of Lee Christie

Lee Christie is a part­ner with Christie Farrell Lee & Bell and is a life­long Indi­ana res­i­dent. He is pas­sion­ate in rep­re­sen­ta­tion, and takes pride in the relationships he devel­ops with his clients. He has exten­sive trial expe­ri­ence in both fed­eral and state court and is a fre­quent lec­turer on trial, medi­a­tion, per­sonal injury, med­ical mal­prac­tice, truck­ing acci­dents, and set­tle­ment issues. Lee has represented thousands of clients who have been personally injured and has obtained settlements and verdicts as high as $60.6M.

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Lee is highly civically engaged with several Indiana organizations, including the Walker Foundation (founding board member and officer) and Indianapolis Bar Foundation (board member and Past President). Lee will be the 2025 President of the Indianapolis Bar Association. He is also a patron of the YMCA.  He is past president of the Lawrence Township Girls Basketball League and continues to work with youth in the inner city of Indianapolis.

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About
Karen Zahka

Photo of Karen Zahka

Karen is a Partner at Trial Lawyers for Justice. She is an experienced and passionate trial lawyer. While she was born and raised in Massachusetts, Karen litigates and tries cases nationwide. She is currently admitted to practice in Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma. She practices in other jurisdictions via pro hac vice.

Throughout Karen’s career, she has contributed to many multi-million verdicts and settlements.