Law Brief®: David Pfeffer and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Legal Implications of Infrastructure Collapses
When your car’s brakes fail on a busy New Jersey highway or your airbag doesn’t deploy during a collision, a defective automotive part may have caused your injuries rather than driver error. In these cases, defective product...more
Court: Calif. Super., Los Angeles Co. - Plaintiff, Ronald Carpenter, filed suit against various defendants, claiming his lung cancer was caused by exposure to asbestos from their products. Carpenter alleged various exposures,...more
Berkoski v. Honda Motor Company, et al., (App. Div. 2025) - The New Jersey Appellate Division was presented with a question about what constitutes a defective product or design under the New Jersey Products Liability Act when...more
The Court of Appeal for Ontario has certified a class action against the manufacturer of a stolen handgun used to carry out the 2018 mass shooting on Danforth Avenue in Toronto, reversing in part the motion judge’s decision...more
State governments, public school districts, and individuals are suing social media companies, such as TikTok and Snapchat, alleging that defects in their algorithms and platform features cause psychological and physical harm,...more
The Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Two (Riverside) in RND Contractors, Inc. v. Superior Court (2025) issued a significant published decision. The California Court of Appeal addressed a previously...more
In a recent case pending in Hawaii state court, a husband and wife sued a tobacco company defendant for various claims related to its manufacturing and marketing of tobacco cigarettes, including strict products liability,...more
For the first time in nearly 40 years, an asbestos case was tried to verdict in Rhode Island. This case, The Estate of Bonnie Bonito, resulted in a full defense verdict!...more
An issue of great importance to all construction project parties, including design professionals and contractors, is pending before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC). In the matter of Trustees of Boston...more
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, a reported 419,000 private-sector employees in California sustained workplace injuries and illnesses in 2022. Workplace incidents in the state claimed 508 employees'...more
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