Last month, CBL was blogging about legal duty, cars flying off the street into phone booths and the like, and generally grumbling that tort duty seemed to extend just about every place and to everything. Well, here's a case suggesting there may be some limits after all.
Back when California had actual factories where products were actually made, we used to see quite a few personal injury cases involving unguarded power presses and similar equipment. I'm guessing most of those cases went to Asia along with the manufacturing and the equipment. But Garcia v. Becker Bros. Steel Co. (April 18, 2011) ___Cal.App.4th____ (Second Dist., B221096) is such a case.
Here's the deal: Becker Bros. buys a slitter line (a collection of machines that slices sheet metal) from Cincinnati Company in 1973. In 1974, California starts requiring guarding, and Cincinnati sends Becker Bros. a couple of letters telling it to guard the equipment. Becker Bros. doesn't, and over the course of twenty-six years, one employee sustains a finger-tip amputation.
In 1999, Becker Bros. sells the equipment to Columbia Steel. Columbia Steel tanks, its bank takes the equipment. Bank eventually sells the equipment to Lexwest. In 2004, Lexwest's employee Garcia sustains a finger amputation using the still unguarded equipment. Garcia sues Becker Bros. for strict product liability and negligence.
Trial court says ixnay, and Court of Appeal agrees. 1. No strict product liability for occasional sale of equipment. 2. As to negligence, no legal duty to an employee of a subsequent purchaser. Period. Ever. Assuming, without deciding, that Becker Bros. may have owed a duty to employees of Columbia Steel, that's where the duty ended. No legal duty to employees owners farther down the feeding chain.
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