Law Brief®: David Pfeffer and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Legal Implications of Infrastructure Collapses
As federal agencies and states grapple with regulating artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance its safety profile, and as businesses race to adopt AI for myriad purposes, it is important to recognize a general safety...more
In Pelton v Maytag, 2024 ONSC 3016 (“Pelton”) the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (the “Court”) ruled that the defendant manufacturers were not liable for failing to warn consumers that the product could fail because of a...more
The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals recently reversed, in part, and affirmed, in part, a lower court decision regarding dismissal of contractual indemnity and implied indemnity claims. WW Consultants was the design...more
On May 4, 2023, Montana changed its product liability laws when the Governor signed SB 216, which was effective upon passage and applies to claims that accrue on or after May 4, 2023. Among the changes is the adoption of a...more
What is the definition of “defective condition” under Arkansas law? “Defective condition” is defined by statute to mean “a condition of a product that renders it unsafe for reasonably foreseeable use and consumption.” Ark....more
It is axiomatic that a plaintiff must offer evidentiary support for each element of her claim in order to survive summary judgment. And a ubiquitous feature of product liability actions is the use of expert witnesses by both...more
Whether an individual is purchasing a new car, a new television, or a new kitchen appliance, the company that makes those products isn’t the only manufacturer involved. In today’s global economy, most products are made by an...more
The Supreme Court of Utah recently found that an incorrect pre-construction geotechnical engineering report is a “defective design.” Thus, actions arising from an incorrect geotechnical report are appropriately governed by...more
Anton Chekhov famously observed that any gun introduced to a story must be fired. And indeed Hollywood producers and directors have followed that rule without fail for about 100 years, recently with tragic consequences on the...more
Foley Hoag LLP publishes this quarterly Update primarily concerning developments in product liability and related law from federal and state courts applicable to Massachusetts, but also featuring selected developments for New...more
Pressure Cooker Explosions Prompt Ongoing Recalls and Lawsuits - A popular kitchen appliance could be an accident waiting to happen. Electric pressure cookers allow busy people to quickly cook meals using a combination of...more
It has been almost seven years since Tincher v. Omega Flex Inc. was decided by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The Tincher court left much unanswered but called on Pennsylvania’s lower courts, the legal academy and the bar to...more
Although “faulty” doesn’t necessarily mean “defective” or “dangerous,” product liability law does indeed hold manufacturers and others liable for producing dangerous products that cause injury. Product liability claims in...more
In Kenney v. Watts Regulator Co, No. 20-2995, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4539 (E.D. Pa. Jan. 11, 2021), the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania considered whether to exclude the plaintiff’s...more
The Georgia Supreme Court recently issued a decision impacting all product liability cases in Georgia by finding that Georgia’s apportionment statute—O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33—applies to claims for strict product liability, and as...more
On October 7, 2020, Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed a defense verdict in favor of a medical device manufacturer and in doing so approved of the trial court’s use of the risk-utility test and not the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin recently cast doubt on employers’ ability to strike the class allegations in a complaint early in litigation. ...more
A negligence suit took an unprecedented turn when a Pennsylvania Federal Court allowed strict liability claims to be brought against a trucking leasing company for its failure to outfit its truck with additional safety...more
In a recent decision, Capes v. Ethicon, Inc., No. 1:19-cv-04895, the Northern District of Georgia finally shed light on the meaning behind one of the limited exceptions to Georgia’s ten-year statute of repose for...more
Since the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania decided Tincher v. Omega Flex, Inc., 104 A.3d 328 (Pa. 2014), parties proceeding in product liability cases in Pennsylvania often disagree about jury instructions. In Davis v....more
Though many states require a contractor to hold a contract directly with a design professional to pursue a claim against a designer for design omissions or defects, a recent case confirms that, in Florida, contractual privity...more
Charlotte Student Hous. DST v. Choate Constr. Co., 2018 NCBC LEXIS 88 (N.C. Super. Ct. Aug. 24, 2018). This case arose from the construction of a student apartment complex known as Arcadia. The plaintiffs, Arcadia’s...more
In Kim v. Toyota Motor Corp., 6 Cal.5th 21 (Cal. 2018), the Supreme Court of California considered whether the trial court properly allowed the defendant to introduce evidence of industry custom and practice in defense of a...more
In Prestress Services Industries of TN, LLC v. W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Co., 280 F.Supp.3d 908 (N.D. Miss. 2017), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi faced a “rather interesting...more