A jury hit Santa Ana-based First American Corp. with $43.2 million in damages Wednesday in a lawsuit with rival Fidelity National Financial Inc., which moved from Irvine to Florida in 2003.
First American, which, like Fidelity, offers title insurance, plans to take a $10 million charge against its fourth-quarter earnings because of the jury award.
The lawsuit filed by Fidelity’s Chicago Title Insurance Corp. charged First American with violating a noncompetition agreement and “intentional interference with contract.” Further details weren’t available.
First American said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it plans to appeal the judgment.
The jury award consists of a $10.8 million compensatory award and a $32.4 million punitive damage award.
