Berkshire Utility Wins Oregon Fire Appeal With Billions at Stake

Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s PacifiCorp won an appeals court challenge to a 2023 jury verdict in a wildfire case that exposed the company to billions of dollars in losses.

A three-judge panel of an Oregon state appeals court ruled Wednesday that a Portland judge improperly handled the trial as a class action — which could potentially wipe out more than $1 billion already awarded to fire victims and force them to start over to pursue damages.

The decision is a major reprieve for the utility. PacifiCorp, which calls itself the largest grid operator in the western US, has been under ...