Monthly Releases

In Donaldson v. J&J and Ethicon, Case No. 21-2028 (7th Cir. June 15, 2022), the Seventh Circuit rejected a "non-specific" defect product liability case against the manufacturers of transvaginal polypropylene mesh medical devices, based on Illinois law. Donaldson sought treatment for stress urinary incontinence and anterior pelvic organ prolapse. In 2010, to remedy these conditions, Dr. Schultheis surgically implanted in Donaldson two transvaginal polypropylene mesh medical devices. Both were manufactured by a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. In 2014, Donaldson sought treatment for injuries...

In Mary Bayes v. Biomet, Inc., No. 21-2964 (8th Cir. December 14, 2022), the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment in plaintiffs' product liability claim, denying Biomet's motions for a judgment as a matter of law, a new trial, or remittitur. Plaintiffs, sued Biomet, Inc. after the wife's M2a Magnum hip implant failed. The wife argued that the implant caused irreparable damage to her hip joint and surrounding tissues. A jury awarded the wife $20 million in damages. The jury awarded an additional $1 million in damages to her husband for his loss of consortium. Biomet appealed,...

In American Family Mutual Insurance v. Wood Stoves Etc., Inc., No. 83528-9-I (Wash. App., October 17, 2022), a Washington appellate court reversed the trial court's grant of summary judgment to the plaintiff subro-carrier based upon Washington's Product Liability Act (WPLA). The case involved a defective wood pellet stove that caught fire twice and caused the insurer to shell out $115,355.88 under a homeowner's insurance policy. American Family then filed a lawsuit against Wood Stoves under WPLA to recover damages. In October, 2021, the insurer moved for summary judgment, which was granted....

In T.H.E. Insurance Co. v. Olson, Nos. 22-1143 et al. Cons. (7th Cir. October 17, 2022) the Seventh Circuit affirmed a Wisconsin District Court that granted the plaintiff-insurance company's motion for judgment on pleadings, The insurance carrier's action sought a declaration that it owed no duty to defend or indemnify its insured, a fireworks company, in an underlying action by two individuals who incurred injuries. Timothy Olson and Todd Zdroik sustained injuries while volunteering at Fourth of July fireworks in 2018. Fireworks from the insured Spielbauer Fireworks Company exploded...

In Rock Hemp Corp. v. Dunn, Case No. 22-1171 (78h Cir. October 11, 2022) the Seventh Circuit affirmed a Wisconsin District Court that denied plaintiff's motion to remand its breach of contract action back to state court The case had been removed to federal court and then the District judge granted defendants' motion to dismiss based on the arbitration clause contained in the contract at issue. The Seventh Circuit found that the trial court could properly reject plaintiff's claim that removal, which occurred months after case had been filed and certain discovery had occurred, was untimely,...

In Tina Burris v. Ethicon Inc. et al., Case No. 3:20-cv-01450, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio denied plaintiff's motion for a new trial based upon some evidentiary errors. In sum, the trial court ruled that the plaintiff was not prejudiced by defendants' reference to a monograph during the testimony of the plaintiff's implanting surgeon, which concerned potential risks and complications. There, Tina Burris underwent implantation of an Ethicon Prolift pelvic mesh device in August 2008. She later suffered complications. In her suit, Burris asserted that she suffered...

In Quiroz v. Chicago Transit Authority, 2022 IL 127603 (September 22, 2022), THE Plaintiff filed a wrongful death suit against the Chicago Transit Authority resulting from the decedent being struck by a transit train after he trespassed into a CTA tunnel and fell next to the tracks. The Cook County circuit court held that the CTA owed no legal duty to protect the decedent from the open and obvious danger of a moving train. The appellate court reversed, finding the allegations in the complaint sufficient to establish a legally recognized duty under section 337 of the Restatement (Second) of...

In Kee v. Howard L. Nations, et al., USDC ND MS., No. 4:20-cv-00127 (August 17, 2022), the Northern District Court of Mississippi found that a woman who had had an implanted blood clot filter can proceed with claims against her law firm for not filing suit on her behalf for the damages caused by the device before the statute of limitations ran out. The retainer contract she signed was held to be too ambiguous under Texas law (which the contract stated governed) to determine what rights were guaranteed and will be sent to a jury trial. This decision underscores the importance of having well...

In Gelis v. BMW of N. Am., LLC, 3d Cir., No. 21-02093 (3rd Cir., Sept. 9, 2022), the Third Circuit threw out a $3.7 million fee award to plaintiffs' attorneys for their work on a class action settlement involving certain BMW 3-Series vehicles with allegedly flawed engine parts. The plaintiffs' class sued BMW, alleging that series N20/N26 engines in some vehicles had defective timing chain and oil pump assemblies that could fail prematurely, requiring repairs costing thousands of dollars. Following the settlement of the action, class counsel agreed not to seek more than $3.7 million in fees...

In Wild Eggs Holdings v. State Auto and Property Casualty Ins. Co, No. 21-5962 (6th Cir., Sept. 9, 2022), the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of the coverage suit. Restaurant chain Wild Eggs notified defendant State Auto of its claim for business losses under the Restaurant Extension Endorsement, which provides for 30 days of lost business income for the suspension of restaurant operations due to the order of a civil authority that resulted from an actual or alleged exposure of a restaurant to a disease. It also claimed coverage for all lost business income resulting from "direct...

In Rankins v. System Solutions of Kentucky, LLC, No. 21-2505 (July 11, 2022) N.D. Ill., E. Div., the Seventh Circuit Ct. of Appeals vacated Dist. Ct.'s Rule 54(b) partial final judgment that concerned Dist. Ct.'s dismissal of third-party plaintiff's action against plaintiff's employer, where third-party plaintiff sought damages for spoliation of evidence, under circumstances where: (1) plaintiff filed products-liability action against defendants-who had designed and installed winch system that plaintiff claimed had caused his personal injuries when cable within winch system broke; and (2)...

In Stevenson v. Windmoeller & Hoelscher Corp., No. 21-2107 (July 7, 2022) N.D. Ill., E. Div., the Seventh Circuit affirmed the entry of summary judgment against the plaintiff in his product liability action. Plaintiff alleged that he sustained injuries arising out of his attempt to clean component of defendant's printing press when plaintiff fell off ladder that had caught itself on cable attached to printing press, Dist. Ct. did not abuse its discretion in denying plaintiff's request for appointment of neutral expert pursuant to Rule 706. Dist. Ct. eventually granted defendant's motion for...