Peter Pataki v. WalMart Inc

── Peter Pataki v. WalMart Inc ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Date: May 20, 2026 Category: General NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT _____________ No. 24-3321 _____________ PETER PATAKI, Appellant v. WALMART INC.; WALMART STORES INC.; WAL-MART STORES, INC.; WAL- MART STORES EAST INC.; WAL-MART STORES I, LP; WALMART ASSOCIATES, INC.; WALMART STORE NUMBER 5447; JOHN DOE 1-5; DOE CORPORATION 1-5 ________________ On Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (D.C. No. 1:16-cv-01109) District Judge: Honorable Christine P. O’Hearn ______________ Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit L.A.R. 34.1(a) February 12, 2026 ______________ Before: CHAGARES, Chief Judge, SCIRICA and MCKEE, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: May 20, 2026) ____________ OPINION* ____________ * This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court and, pursuant to 3d Cir. I.O.P. 5.7, does not constitute binding precedent. CHAGARES, Chief Judge. Peter Pataki filed a lawsuit against Walmart after he slipped and fell on a piece of plastic inside one of the retailer’s stores. At trial, the District Court precluded Pataki’s liability expert from testifying. The jury later sided with Walmart. Pataki now appeals the District Court’s ruling on his liability expert and also argues, for the first time, that counsel for Walmart made unfairly prejudicial statements during closing arguments. For the reasons set forth below, we will affirm. I. We write solely for the parties and so recite only the facts necessary to our disposition. Pataki was walking down the aisle of a Kearny, New Jersey, Walmart store when he slipped and fell on a piece of clear plastic. The store’s surveillance footage captured Pataki’s fall. Pataki stood back up after falling and briefly continued walking around the store. He eventually spoke to a Walmart manager, who had him fill out an accident report and contacted emergency services. Pataki left the Walmart in an ambulance and was treated at a local emergency room. He was prescribed painkillers for back pain and released later that day. He was eventually treated for injuries to his spine. Pataki filed this lawsuit in New Jersey state court and Walmart removed the case to federal court. In the leadup to trial, Walmart filed a motion in limine to exclude the testimony of Jerry Birnbach, Pataki’s liability expert. The District Court first granted Walmart’s motion in part, prohibiting Birnbach from testifying about the conditions he observed at the store on his visit two years after Pataki’s fall. The District Court later 2 excluded Birnbach’s testimony entirely after reviewing the transcript of his de bene esse deposition. The District Court reasoned that Birnbach’s proposed expert testimony did not offer any knowledge or opinion beyond the scope of an average juror. During closing arguments, counsel for Walmart noted that Pataki’s first attorney had a close personal relationship with Pataki’s doctor and that the doctor had a financial interest in the outcome of the case. Pataki’s counsel did not object during the closing argument. The jury deliberated and unanimously found that Pataki h