Day on Torts

August 26, 2005

Verdict for Toyota Reversed

The 11th Circuit has reversed a jury verdict in favor of Toyota in a seat belt case, holding that the judge should have instructed the jury on the consumer expectation test. The judge only instructed on the risk-utility test. The judge was applying Florida law and the 11th Circuit ruled that, under Florida law, a seatbelt is a product about which a ordinary consumer could form expectations.

Read the opinion here. As you do remember that Tennessee also has a consumer expectation test in products cases.

August 26, 2005

Vioxx Trial Schedule

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

State Court New Jersey September 12
State Court Houston October (exact date unknown)
Federal Court New Orleans Nov. 28,
Federal Court New Orleans, Feb. 13, 2006
Federal Court New Orleans, March 13, 2006
Federal Court New Orleans, April 10, 2006

By the way, according to this article in the New York Times, Merck has shifted its strategy and now said that it may settle some of the claims against it.

August 25, 2005

Use of Photos of PD to Disprove PI Claims

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Maryland Court of Appeals has ruled that a defendant may use photos showing relatively little property damage to a vehicle to argue that the plaintiff did not have a significant personal injury.

The decision is Mason v. Lynch. There is also a great dissent on the issue; it makes the point that there is a substantial body of scientific literature that actually disproves the argument that “minor” impacts do not cause serious neck injuries. Accordingly, the dissent argues, a lawyer should not be able to make the argument that an injury is not real or significant simply based on the lack of property damage seen in photographs.

August 25, 2005

Off Topic Recycled Political Joke

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

OK – so it is a recycled joke. Most of them are.

How many Bush administration officials does it take to change a light bulb? Ten

1. One to deny that a light bulb needs to be changed;

August 24, 2005

Pat Robertson’s Attempt at Plausible Deniablity Fails

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I wrote the other day about Rev. Robertson’s suggestion that the United States kill a foreign leader. Here is the post.

August 22, 2005: Believe it or not there are people who get there news from Pat Robertson. This man, who runs a tax-exempt empire that he holds out as a church, now has called for the assassination of the leader of a foreign country.

What does the rest of the world – particularly the Muslim world – think about America when one of us who is prominent to have his own TV show calls for the murder of a foreign leader? When a nut in the Muslim world does this we call him a savage and a terrorist.

August 24, 2005

Seminars

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

I mentioned the other day that we would be hosting a couple of seminars in December, the first designed to help newer lawyers and the second designed for those with a little more experience. You can read more about both programs, and register on-line, by clicking here.

August 24, 2005

Plaintiff Can Recover Full Amount of Medical Bills

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Another state has ruled tht a plaintiff “may present to the jury the amount that her health care providers initially billed for services rendered” rather than the amount paid by the plaintiff’s insurer.

The case is Arthur v. Catour; read the opinion of the Illinois Supreme Court here. The decision cites to the law of other jurisdictions on the issue.

August 23, 2005

Off Topic — Pat Robertson Does it Again

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Believe it or not there are people who get there news from Pat Robertson. This man, who runs a tax-exempt empire that he holds out as a church, now has called for the assassination of the leader of a foreign country.

What does the rest of the world – particularly the Muslim world – think about America when one of us who is prominent to have his own TV show calls for the murder of a foreign leader? When a nut in the Muslim world does this we call him a savage and a terrorist.

See the words and watch the video of “our” nut here. And then think about the fact that right now in some cave in Pakistan this video is being shown to a bunch of angry young men with guns, bombs, and a willingness to sacrifice their lives in the name of their religion.

August 23, 2005

Lighter Manufacturer Held Liable in Child Death Case

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The Illinois Court of Appeals remanded a wrongful death case for trial on behalf of a child who died in a fire started by a lighter that lacked child-resistent features. Name of the lighter: “Aim ‘n Flame.”

The court found that the jury could have reasonably concluded that the risks of the lighter as manufactured outweighed the benefits of it, making it defective. The court affirmed dismissal of the negligence and failure to warn claims.

Read the opinion here

August 22, 2005

Next Vioxx Trial

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The next Vioxx trial in September 12 in New Jersey.