Richelman v. Kewanee Machinery and Conveyor Co.

375 N.E.2d 885 (1978)

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Richelman v. Kewanee Machinery and Conveyor Co.

Appellate Court of Illinois
375 N.E.2d 885 (1978)

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  • Written by Sean Carroll, JD

Facts

Mark Richelman (plaintiff), a two-year-old child, was injured when he stuck his leg into a grain auger on his grandfather’s farm. No one else was present to see whether Richelman was trying to use the auger, was playing, or simply tripped and fell. Richelman brought a design-defect suit based on strict liability and negligence against Kewanee Machinery and Conveyor Company (Kewanee) (defendant), the manufacturer of the auger. The design engineer of the auger, as a witness for Richelman, testified that he had based the width of the space between the auger’s guard bars on his own size 12 shoe. The jury returned a verdict in favor of Richelman. Kewanee appealed, arguing that Richelman’s injury was not foreseeable as a matter of law under Winnett v. Winnett, 310 N.E.2d 1 (Ill. 1974), which held that a products-liability action could not be maintained if a reasonable jury could not find that the plaintiff’s conduct was reasonably foreseeable.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Moran, J.)

Dissent (Jones, J.)

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Casebooks

Products Liability

Key Terms

  • Strict LiabilityImposition of liability upon a defendant regardless of the defendant’s conduct or fault. Under strict liability in the tort context, an actor is liable regardless of whether the actor was negligent or otherwise culpable. Strict liability in the tort context is imposed only in limited circumstances; it may be applied in cases involving abnormally dangerous activities, injuries caused by animals, and products liability. In criminal law, strict liability imposes criminal liability with no proof of fault. Strict liability may extend to all elements of a crime or only to some elements. In many jurisdictions, strict liability is also known as absolute liability.
  • Proximate CauseA causal connection between one person's action and another person's injury that is sufficiently direct to impose legal liability on the actor.
  • Reasonably ForeseeableA consequence is reasonably foreseeable if it could have been anticipated by an ordinary person of average intelligence as naturally flowing from his actions.

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