Product liability lawsuit can go forward

This Pennsylvania product liability lawsuit involved a tragic lawnmower accident. According to the court transcript, a grandfather was cutting his lawn using a riding mower sold by the Simplicity Manufacturing Corporation (Simplicity). He put the mower in reverse and ended up running over his granddaughter's leg. She was rushed to the hospital and had to have her left foot amputated.

Her family filed a product liability lawsuit against the manufacturer alleging that the lawnmower was defectively designed because it didn't have any back-over protection features. They filed the case alleging that Simplicity was strictly liable for the child's injuries. Simplicity alleged that a strict liability claim can only be filed by the intended user of the product – in this case, the grandfather who owned the mower.

A lower court dismissed the case, but the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that ruling and reasoned that bystanders (here, the granddaughter) may have a cause of strict liability even though she was not the intended user.

What is strict liability?

Strict liability is a cause of action that makes a person, or a company, responsible for their actions regardless of whether they were at fault. It applies to inherently dangerous activities, or this case, to the lawnmower company who manufactures a defective or dangerous product and puts in into the “stream of commerce” – which means that it is sold in the marketplace. Unlike a negligence cause of action where a plaintiff would have to show that the other party acted negligently, a plaintiff in a strict liability cause of action only has to show that the product was defective. Defective products can be those that are manufactured incorrectly or don't provide proper safety instructions.

While many products may fall into this category, if you've been injured, contact an experienced product liability attorney to discuss your situation and see if strict liability might apply in your case. Even if it doesn't, there are many other causes of action that may be available to you.