Question
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In a product liability case, a company can settie out of court for a loss of , or go to trial, losing if found guilty and nothing if found not guilty. Lawyers for the company estimate the probability of a not-gulity verdict to be 0.8. Complete parts (a) through (b) below.
a. What is the expected value of the amount the company can lose by taking the case to court?
240000
b. Should the company settie out of court?
A. The company should settle out of court, since the amount it expects to gain by going to trial is more than the cost of setting out of court.
B. The company should settle out of couit, since the amount it expects to lose by going to trial is more than the cost of setting out of court.
C. The company should allow the case to go to trial, since the amount it expects to gain by going to trial is more than the cost of setting out of court.
D. The company should allow the case to go to trial, since the amount it expects to lose by going to trial is less than the cost of setting out of court.

Ask by Reid Owen. in the United States
Mar 20,2025

Upstudy AI Solution

Tutor-Verified Answer

Answer

a. The expected loss by going to trial is $240,000.
b. The company should allow the case to go to trial because the expected loss ($240,000) is less than the settlement cost ($350,000).

Solution

Step 1. Calculate the expected loss if the company goes to trial
The company faces two outcomes at trial:
  • Loss of if found guilty.
  • Loss of if found not guilty.
The estimated probability of a not-guilty verdict is . Therefore, the probability of a guilty verdict is .
The expected value of the loss at trial is:
Step 2. Compare the expected trial loss to the settlement cost
  • Settlement cost:
  • Expected trial loss:
Since , the company expects to lose less money by going to trial than by settling.
Step 3. Answer the questions
a. The expected value of the amount the company can lose by taking the case to trial is:
b. The company should not settle out of court since the expected loss at trial is less than the settlement cost. This corresponds to:
D. The company should allow the case to go to trial, since the amount it expects to lose by going to trial is less than the cost of setting out of court.

Answered by UpStudy AI and reviewed by a Professional Tutor

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Mind Expander

It’s all about crunching those numbers! The expected loss if the company goes to trial can be calculated using the formula: . So, . This means heading to trial could cost the company an estimated .
Now, when deciding whether to settle or go to trial, we’re comparing that expected loss of against the settlement offer. Since the expected financial outcome of going to trial is lower ($240,000) than settling ($350,000), the company should definitely settle out of court. That makes option B the right choice!

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