Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
EUBANK FAMILY’S MULTI-MILLION
All bets are off says legal ace
A LEGAL expert says Caesars Entertainment could pay out “tens of millions” if found negligent.
Lawyer Radd Seiger said: “All bets are off. In the USA, damages for non-economic loss – purely for losing a loved one and for the emotional distress that causes – are absolutely unlimited.
“The cases are decided by a jury. If the claim succeeds, the jury is virtually free to award
Radd Seiger compensation as it sees fit. On top of that, a jury can award punitive damages, compensation to punish the defendant if what they did wrong was really beyond the pale.
“Awards of hundreds of millions of dollars are not unheard of – although if the
Eubank family succeed I’d expect an award in tens of millions of dollars. Most cases settle before they reach court but families often do not sue for money.
“They want the truth and someone to be held responsible.
“That appears to be the Eubanks’ motivation here.”
Mr Seiger helped the family of motorcyclist Harry Dunn, 19, sue driver Anne Sacoolas. She returned to the US after a crash near RAF Croughton, Northants, which cost the teenager his life.
EXCLUSIVE SHATTERED boxing star Chris Eubank today tells of his family’s “fight for justice” as they seek the truth around the death of his son.
A court filing alleges wrongful death by negligence by Caesars Entertainment, Nevada – the management company of the Caesars Palace resort in Dubai, where Sebastian Eubank drowned two years ago in shallow water covered by CCTV, aged just 29.
He suffered a cardiac arrest and “slumped” fatally into the water.
The civil court complaint – which experts say could lead to a payout in the tens of millions – claim lifeguards found his ID and belongings on the beach, which is covered by cameras.
But it is alleged staff went home without searching for him and he was only found the following morning. Lawyers claim he may have survived if given swift attention.
The claim alleges: “The lifeguards were not paying attention and/or were fatigued and/or had been insufficiently trained to protect guests.”
Tearful Eubank, 56, told us yesterday: “This is our chance for truth and justice. We will fight until we have that for Sebastian’s memory.
“All we’ve wanted since Sebastian died is to understand why it happened, and we are getting close.”
Ex-world middleweight champ Eubank choked with emotion as he spoke of his “amazing” son and told how he backs litigation brought by Sebastian’s widow Salma Abdelati.
Papers were filed on Friday afternoon by lawyers at a court in Nevada, Las Vegas – home to the resort’s management company Caesars Entertainment. This paper approached Chris after discovering the court documents and the Celebrity Big Brother star said: “The case is a chance for us to fight on Sebastian’s behalf for the truth to come out.
“And if a court finds his death could have been avoided, it’s a chance for someone to take responsibility and for us to get justice. The case is constantly
on my mind. We can’t bring Sebastian back, but we can do this for him. I’m sure Caesars will do what is right.”
Eubank, a WBO middleweight and super-middleweight champ in the 1990s, is tormented by Sebastian’s fate. He said he “cried so hard” after learning his son was left struggling to breathe.
Sebastian, who was just a week short of his 30th birthday, was also a boxer, going by the name Alka Lion while fighting in light-heavyweight bouts and mixed martial arts. He died a month after becoming a dad to son Raheem.
Sebastian had headed to Cove Beach – a poolside restaurant and bar that forms part of the £1.5billion Caesars Palace Dubai hotel complex on manmade peninsula Bluewaters Island.
Grieving dad Eubank said: “I always believed there were things we didn’t know and this is a chance for things to be heard. We’ve been working over many months to gather information. It’s about bringing truth to his story, making sure answers are there for his son when he grows up.”
According to court papers, Sebastian arrived on July 7, 2021 and went to a private beach area at about 6.30pm. At 7pm, he stood near the shore “in water less than waist deep” for a few minutes “before slumping into the water and remaining there, motionless”.
An autopsy found Sebastian suffered a cardiac event linked to an unknown pre-existing condition, then drowned.
The legal documents state the beach was monitored by CCTV and staff, the sun had not set, the area was well lit, the water was calm and visibility was clear. And, it is alleged, it was not until around 6am the next morning “that a lifeguard noticed Sebastian’s body floating within the enclosed beach area”.
The papers claim “other lifeguards then noticed Sebastian’s body, but no effort was made to actually investigate until a half hour later”. They add this happened when one lifeguard swam out and brought his body to shallow water. Lawyers claim staff waited on instructions
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We can’t bring my Sebastian back but we can at least do this for him... he was an amazing son
Chris Eubank yesterday