Five and a half years later, Cuozzo, 80, is still waiting for more than $6 million that was awarded by a jury that determined Berkshire Hathaway Inc. utility PacifiCorp’s equipment caused the fire. Cuozzo’s award is a tiny part of billions of dollars in damage claims that followed Oregon’s so-called Labor Day fires, which burned thousands of properties and rank among the state’s biggest and most destructive.“You know who owns PacifiCorp: Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway,” Cuozzo said in an interview. “We know how much money he has – it’s not going to break them by any means.” PacifiCorp has embarked on an all-out effort to curb the firm’s wildfire liabilities — both present and future. The company, which bills itself as the largest electric grid operator in the western US, has been lobbying across multiple states for laws that would effectively cap payouts to fire victims. It’s also keen to pass on fire-related losses to its customers. In court, meanwhile, PacifiCorp is appealing jury verdicts for Cuozzo and scores of others.





