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 York and New Jersey. If you
find this update useful, please encourage your colleagues and
contacts to also register with us on our website. As always, you
can access all of our publications at https://foleyhoag.com.
Included in this Issue:
MASSACHUSETTS
- First Circuit Holds Out-Of-State Online Retailer Did Not Purposefully Avail Itself Of Privilege Of Acting In Massachusetts, A Requirement For Personal Jurisdiction Under Due Process, By Employing Session Replay Code That Allowed Defendant To Record And Replay Massachusetts Plaintiff's Website Interactions, As Plaintiff Had No Evidence Code Was Intended To Target Massachusetts Users Or Even Informed Defendant Of Plaintiff's Location
- Massachusetts Federal Court Grants Summary Judgment On Manufacturing Defect, Failure-To-Warn And Deceptive Practices Claims Against Surgical Stapler Manufacturer After Excluding Some Expert Opinions As Unqualified Or Unhelpful To Jury And Finding No Evidence Plaintiff's Surgeon Relied On Stapler Instructions Or Would Have Relied On Individual Adverse Event Reports If Provided, But Denies Judgment On Design Defect Claim As Plaintiff's Expert Proposed Alternative Designs To Control Force And Rate Of Staple Firing
NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY SUPPLEMENT
- New Jersey Federal Court Holds Mechanical Engineer With Two Decades Of Experience Designing Lawnmowers And Similar Products Qualified To Opine To Design Defect Based On Inadequate Fuel Tank Roll-Over Protection, And Methodology Reliable Where He Examined Accident Data, Inspected Burnt Lawnmower, And Performed Both Roll-Over Testing On Exemplar Mowers And Engineering Analysis Of Mower Model
- New Jersey Federal Court Holds (1) Claims EV Manufacturer Overstated Battery Range Under Its Test Methods In Advertisements Not Preempted By EPA And FTC Regulations, As Those Only Governed EPA-Mandated New Vehicle Sticker And Claims Regarding EPA-Method Range; (2) Plaintiffs Adequately Pled Breach Of Express Warranty, Negligent Misrepresentation And Consumer Protection Claims By Identifying Specific Misrepresentations And Pleading Defendant's Knowledge Of Overstatement; And (3) Breach Of Implied Warranty Of Merchantability Claim Failed As Cars Were Still Fit For Ordinary Purpose Of Providing Transportation
- New York Appellate Division Holds Expert Testimony Regarding Disease Causation By Mold Exposure Inadmissible, As Proffered Scientific Literature And Expert Testimony Did Not Show General Causation Opinion Had Gained General Acceptance In Scientific Community, And Expert Failed To Quantify Plaintiff's Exposure And Therefore Could Not Establish Specific Causation
- New York Federal Court Rejects Second Plaintiffs' Attempt In MDLTo Introduce Expert Testimony That Prenatal Exposure To Acetaminophen Is Capable Of Causing ADHD Because Expert Failed Adequately To Account For Possible Confounding By Genetic Causation, And Analysis Of Bradford-Hill Causation Criteria Such As Temporality And Dose-Response Relationship Ignored Critical Information And Thus Displayed Results-Oriented Reasoning
Download the July 2024 Foley Hoag Product Liability Update (pdf).
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.