Opinion ID: 1058614
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Benjamin West

Text: The following evidence regarding Mario's damages from losing the Benjamin West project was also admitted without objection. Mario had a prior working relationship with Benjamin West. Benjamin West solicited bids from Mario and two other companies to supply lighting products to unspecified buyers. Cook submitted Mario's bid on his last day of work. Scutellaro learned of Cook's bid after Cook resigned when Benjamin West contacted Mario to inquire about samples. When Scutellaro reviewed the project's file, Scutellaro learned that Cook attended a meeting in September 2003 with the president of Benjamin West and two other lighting manufacturers. Scutellaro testified that he reviewed Cook's notes from the meeting with Benjamin West and testified that this [wa]s not a speculation project, this [wa]s [a] reality. Scutellaro asserted that Cook ball parked the pricing for the project, failing to do the work necessary to get an accurate quote. Scutellaro testified that Cook did nothing to quote this three and a-half million dollar project, potentially a $30 million project. Scutellaro also testified that Cook submitted a bid to Benjamin West that was a million dollars too high. Scutellaro stated that because of [Cook's] bogus bid, [Benjamin West] had eliminated us from the project. As a result of losing the Benjamin West project, Mario claimed $3,532,400 in lost revenue and $1,419,019 in lost profits. Scutellaro testified that Ashley Lighting won the project. The evidence was admitted without objection. Having been admitted, the evidence was sufficient to support a jury verdict finding that Mario would have won the Benjamin West project based on Mario's long-term relationship with Benjamin West. The combined lost profits from the Hilton Garden Inn project, $810,868, and the Benjamin West project, $1,419,019, were $2,229,887, exceeding the compensatory damages award. We hold that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's conclusion that the defendants' wrongful conduct caused Mario's damages and that there was sufficient evidence from both the Hilton Garden Inn project and the Benjamin West project to support the compensatory damages award. Accordingly, we need not consider the remaining projects from which Mario alleges damages. Bitar, 272 Va. at 141, 630 S.E.2d at 325-26 ([W]here the trial court has declined to strike the plaintiff's evidence or to set aside a jury verdict, the standard of appellate review in Virginia requires this Court to consider whether the evidence presented, taken in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, was sufficient to support the jury verdict in favor of the plaintiff.). Additionally, the evidence was sufficient to support the compensatory damages verdict against all the defendants. As previously noted, some theories of recovery were not asserted against all the defendants. However, on the claim of common law conspiracy, each of the defendants was alleged to have conspired with the others to injure Mario in its legitimate business expectations. The jury instructions on the subject, given without objection, were: