Vanessa Bryant Seeking 'Hundreds Of Millions' In Damages Over Kobe & Gigi Bryant Crash

According to new court documents, Vanessa Bryant says the unexpected death of Kobe Bryant cost their family “hundreds of millions of dollars.”

As we previously reported, a wrongful death lawsuit was filed against Island Express Helicopters in February, less than a month after the NBA legend and his daughter Gianna Bryant were killed in the California helicopter crash, along with seven others.

The new documents, obtained by E! News, show that Bryant now “seeks economic damages, non-economic damages, prejudgment interest, punitive damages, and other relief as the Court deems just and proper.”

The court papers also read:

“Although the total specific amount of personal injury damages that Plaintiff seeks is TBD, Kobe Bryant’s future lost earnings equals hundreds of millions of dollars.”

It was estimated at the time of his death in January that Bryant’s net worth was $600 million.

The 72-page wrongful death lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in February argued the company, agents and employees, including Ara George Zobayan, the pilot of the helicopter who also died in the crash, had a “duty to use that degree of care that an ordinarily careful and prudent pilot would use under the same or similar circumstances.”

The lawsuit additionally claimed Island Express was only allowed to fly under visual flight rules, but the aircraft engaged in unnecessary and needlessly risky means of transportation under the circumstances of the weather that day, which was extremely low fog.

At the time of the crash, Zobayan was allegedly going 180 miles per hour through the heavy fog in a steep decline in Calabasas, California. In addition, the suit alleged the pilot failed to do essential tasks which would have prevented the accident, including properly monitoring and assessing the weather prior to take off, failing to abort the flight despite knowing about the cloudy conditions, failing to avoid “natural obstacles” in the flight path, and failing to maintain control of the helicopter, per the docs.

It was reported when the suit was initially filed that Vanessa was asking for punitive damages, claiming the pilot and Island Express were reckless, in addition to “pre-impact” terror damages AKA damages for the emotional trauma Kobe and Gigi suffered as the pilot struggled to get control of the aircraft prior to their deaths.

Following Vanessa’s suit, the company responded by placing blame on the victims for the accident:

“Any injuries or damages to plaintiffs and/or their decedent were directly caused in full or in part by the negligence or fault of plaintiffs and/or their decedent, including their knowing and voluntary encounter with the risks involved, and that this negligence was a substantial factor in causing their purported damages, for which this answering defendant bears no responsibility.”

In addition to Kobe, Gigi, and pilot Ara, the crash tragically took the lives of 13-year-old Payton Chester and her mother Sarah Chester, 14-year-old Alyssa Altobelli and her parents Keri Altobelli and John Altobelli, and basketball coach Christina Mauser.

Surviving members of the Altobelli and Mauser families filed separate wrongful death suits in April, claiming negligence on behalf of the company is why their loved ones passed away.

[Image via WENN/Instar]