On October 21, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, applying Georgia law, held that four defendant manufacturers were relieved of liability for failing to warn current and former employees of Lockheed Martin Corporation (Lockheed) about the potential health dangers associated with beryllium in aircraft parts. Parker v. Schmiede Machine & Tool Corp., No. 10-14703 (11th Cir. Oct. 21, 2011). Relying on the "sophisticated user" or "learned intermediary" doctrine, the Eleventh Circuit found that the plaintiffs failed to adduce evidence that the defendant manufacturers[1] possessed information regarding a hazard of beryllium that the plaintiffs' employer did not already possess.
Background
The plaintiffs were current and former employees of Lockheed who worked with and around beryllium-containing products, manufactured by the defendants, in an aircraft manufacturing plant in Marietta, Georgia. The plant produced aircrafts containing beryllium parts for almost 60 years. In their complaint, the plaintiffs claimed that handling beryllium and/or working in areas of the plant where beryllium was handled caused serious health problems, including chronic beryllium disease and beryllium sensitization.
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