Liriano v. Hobart Corp.
Court of Appeals of New York
700 N.E.2d 303 (1998)
- Written by Mary Pfotenhauer, JD
Facts
Liriano (plaintiff) lost his hand and forearm in an accident involving a meat grinder sold and manufactured by Hobart Corp. (defendant). Liriano’s employer had removed the grinder’s safety guard. There was no warning on the grinder about using it without the safety guard. Liriano sued Hobart for defective design and a failure to warn. The jury found that Liriano’s employer was 95 percent liable and that Hobart was 5 percent liable; the jury apportioned one-third of the total responsibility to Liriano. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals certified a question to the New York Court of Appeals to determine if a manufacturer could be found liable under a failure-to-warn theory in products-liability cases in which the manufacturer's liability under a defective-design theory is precluded by a third party's substantial alterations to the manufacturer's product.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Ciparick, J.)
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