HOBART CORPORATION, A FOREIGN CORPORATION, APPELLANT,
v.
ALLAN T. SIEGLE, A MINOR, BY AND THROUGH HIS LEGAL GUARDIAN MARY E. HOERBER, AND STEVEN SIEGLE AND BETTYE SIEGLE, INDIVIDUALLY, APPELLEES
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Hobart Corporation appeals a jury verdict in a products liability action where a minor suffered hand injuries from a commercial food grinder. The Third District affirmed the judgment, holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in evidentiary rulings or jury instructions, and that any technical errors were harmless.
The trial court did not abuse its discretion in any of these rulings. Evidence of prior accidents was admissible as it demonstrated children could suffer similar injuries from a substantially similar product. Exclusion of evidence of absent accidents was proper because it was not probative of a material issue given that children could operate both product models dangerously. Any error in jury instructions was harmless because the instructions as a whole applied objective standards and the evidence clearly showed Hobart's knowledge of the danger to children.
[1] A trial court does not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence of prior accidents involving a substantially similar product, even if the prior accidents involved an ea…
[2] A trial court does not abuse its discretion in admitting testimony regarding prior incidents involving a similar product, even if the underlying complaints were not forma…
Previewing 2 of 6 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“strict liability should be imposed only when a product the manufacturer places on the market, knowing that it is to be used without inspection for defects, proves to have a defect that causes injury to a human being.”
Establishes the legal standard for strict product liability under Florida law, requiring that a defective product cause injury; supports affirmance of judgment against manufacturer.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAllan Siegle, a minor, suffered injuries when he put his hand into a Hobart commercial food grinder model being used at his parents' pizza restaurant.…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Restatement (Second) Of Torts § 402(A) cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
We deny Hobart Corporation’s motion for rehearing and motion for certification. We substitute the following opinion for the opinion issued March 10, 1992. Hobart Corporation appeals a final judgment in favor of plaintiff Allan Seigle, a minor, and his parents. The trial court entered judgment after a jury trial in plaintiffs’ products liability action to recover damages for injuries Allan suffered when he put his hand in a food grinder in use at his parents’ pizza restaurant. For the following reasons, we affirm the final judgment.
First, we are not persuaded that the trial court’s evidentiary rulings require reversal.
The trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting evidence of prior accidents involving an earlier model of Hobart’s product;1 the evidence demonstrates that the children injured in those accidents had put their hands into the throat of a substantially similar product. See Friddle v. Seaboard Coast Line R.R. Co., 306 So. 2d 97 (Fla.1974); Losar Mfg. Co., Inc. v. Backanov, 436 So. 2d 236 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983); cf. 3-M Corp. McGhan Medical Reports Div. v. Brown, 475 So. 2d 994 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985).
As to the testimony of three children who suffered amputation of a hand as a result of incidents involving a similar Hobart product, we agree that it would have been preferable for appellees to proffer the complaints filed in the lawsuits, but we do not discern any trial court abuse of discretion in permitting the testimony. See Losar, 436 So. 2d at 236; see also Sims v. Brown, 574 So. 2d 131 (Fla.1991); Trees v. K-Mart Corp., 467 So. 2d 401 (Fla. 4th DCA), review denied, 479 So. 2d 119 (Fla.1985); cf. Gomaco Corp. v. Faith, 550 So. 2d 482 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989), review denied, 558 So. 2d 18 (Fla.1990).
Furthermore, the court’s exclusion of evidence of the absence of reported accidents involving the product model that Allan was using does not merit reversal. The court did not abuse its discretion in excluding such evidence.
The evidence showed that children the same age as Allan could put their hands down the throats of both models.
Therefore, the absence of reported accidents was not probative of a material issue such as the nonexistence of a dangerous condition.2 See C. Ehrhardt, Florida Evidence § 411.2 (1992) and cited cases; cf Harless v. Boyle-Midway Div., Am. Home Products, 594 F. 2d 1051, 1053 (5th Cir. 1979) (trial court erred in excluding evidence that no deaths occurred' when new label warned about product danger).
Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in its evidentiary rulings. See Sims, 574 So. 2d at 133-134.
Second, we disagree with Hobart’s contention that the trial court erred in rulings pertaining to jury instructions. Contrary to Hobart’s assertion, the trial court did not inadvertently omit the bracketed portion of the product liability instruction referring to the risk-benefit test.3 A review of the record discloses that Hobart agreed to withdraw its requested instruction, stating that it was “pretty much repetitive” of appellees’ instruction.
The trial court announced that it would give appellees’ product liability instruction and Ho bart’s requested instruction on negligent and defective design that included the risk-benefit analysis.4,5 Hobart did not object at that point, or at any other time, prior to the verdict, to the court’s failure to deliver the instruction it now alleges was erroneously omitted.
Thus, the error, if any, was not preserved for review. City of Orlando v. Birmingham, 539 So. 2d 1133 (Fla.1989); see City of Sunrise v. Bradshaw, 470 So. 2d 804 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985).
Furthermore, the court did not commit reversible error in instructing the jury, as part of the strict liability instructions, that Allan was a user of the product.6 Assuming, without deciding, that the trial court erred in giving the instruction, any error was harmless.7 The trial court’s discretion to give an instruction will not be disturbed absent prejudicial error. Goldschmidt v. Holman, 571 So. 2d 422 (Fla.1990). “Any technical error in the ... jury instruction could not have confused or deceived the jury when viewed in light of all the evidence and the other jury instructions given in the cause.” Rety v. Green, 546 So. 2d 410, 424 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 553 So. 2d 1165 (Fla.1989).
Evidence in the record demonstrates that Hobart knew that children were sometimes in the vicinity when the product was in use and that children had been injured by the product. See Rety, 546 So. 2d at 423.
Consequently, the instruction could not have misled the jury or induced it to reach an unwarranted verdict finding Hobart liable. See generally Life Ins. Co. of No. Am. v. Del Aguila, 417 So. 2d 651, 652 (Fla.1982).
The jury instructions as a whole reflect that the jury was not directed to determine product defectiveness from Allan’s point of view. E.g., Bellotte v. Zayre Corp., 116 N.H. 52, 352 A. 2d 723 (1976). The risk-benefit instruction told the jury to apply an objective standard by considering the product's defectiveness in light of the “common knowledge and normal public expectation of danger.” Auburn Mach. Works Co., Inc. v. Jones, 366 So. 2d 1167, 1170 (Fla.1979).
Thus, any error that may have occurred from the giving of the challenged instruction does not mandate reversal.
Hobart’s remaining points lack merit. Accordingly, we affirm the final judgment.
. Allan was injured by a post-1975 No. 12 commercial food grinder attachment that had a 6 inch cylindrical vertical "throat" with a 1.97 inch "mouth.” The food is inserted into the "mouth." The pre-1975 model had a 2.5 inch "mouth” and a 4.5 inch "throat.”
. Hobart’s witnesses testified that they knew that children had injured themselves on the pre-1975 model. However, in designing the present product model, Hobart did not conduct tests involving young children. The design change did not alleviate the danger of injury to young children.
. The notes to Florida Standard Jury Instructions on product liability provide that the jury may be instructed as to the consumer expectation analysis, Restatement (Second) of Torts § 402A, comment i, and/or the risk-benefit test in order to determine product defectiveness. The instruction provides: "A product is unreasonably dangerous because of its design if [the product fails to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used as intended or in a manner reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer] [or] [the risk of danger in the design outweighs the benefits].” Fla. Std. Jury Instr. (Civ.) PL 5. Both tests require application of the objective standard to determine the defective nature of the product. The consumer expectation test requires consideration of the ordinary consumer’s expectations. The risk-benefit analysis requires consideration of the "normal public expectation of danger." Auburn Mach. Works Co., Inc. v. Jones, 366 So. 2d 1167, 1170 (Fla.1979).
. In determining whether the product was defectively designed and whether the risk of danger in the design outweighed the benefit of the product, the court instructed the jury to consider "the usefulness and desirability of the products, the availability of other and safer products to meet the same need, the likelihood of injury and its probable seriousness, the obviousness of the danger, common knowledge and normal public expectation of danger, avoidability of injury by care and use of the product, and the ability to eliminate the danger without seriously impairing the usefulness of the product or making it unduly expensive.”
. The transcript reveals that the written jury instructions were composed of portions of the submitted instructions that the court cut and pasted together. The record does not include appellees' requested instruction on the product liability issue; the copy of the instructions that the judge cut and pasted does not include the bracketed portions.
. The instruction read: "The Court instructs you, as a matter of law, that Allan T. Siegle, a minor, is a ‘user/consumer’ as contemplated within the law of products liability.” See Restatement (Second) of Torts § 402A and comment 1. The uncontroverted evidence indicated that Allan was injured while he was using the product for the use intended, namely, to grind cheese. Cf. High v. Westinghouse Elec. Corp., 559 So. 2d 227 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989).
.In West v. Caterpillar Tractor Co., Inc., 336 So. 2d 80 (Fla.1976), the Florida Supreme Court adopted the theory of strict liability stated in Restatement (Second) of Torts § 402A and extended a manufacturer’s liability to bystanders. The court announced that "strict liability should be imposed only when a product the manufacturer places on the market, knowing that it is to be used without inspection for defects, proves to have a defect that causes injury to a human being.” West, 336 So. 2d at 86. West, 336 So. 2d at 89, extended the availability of a cause of action under § 402A beyond those persons delineated in the Restatement.
Therefore, whether Allan was a user, consumer or bystander, he was entitled to bring a strict product liability action.
Furthermore, Allan is not precluded from bringing a strict liability action by the fact that the product defect was passive rather than active. Moffat v. U.S. Foundry & Mfg. Corp., 551 So. 2d 592, 593 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989). Hobart’s counsel acknowledged the West rule during the charge conference when he said, "We all, I think, agree that the law under West requires a minor or bystander or anybody else injured by a defective product is entitled to recovery.”
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Liggett Grp., Inc. v. Davis, 973 So. 2d 467 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007)…defect which renders the product unreasonably dangerous. See id. (emphasis added). The defectiveness issue in both tests at issue is based on an objective standard and not the viewpoint of any particular consumer. Id. (citing Hobart Corp. v. Siegle, 600 So. 2d 503, 505 n. 3 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992)). The “normal public expectation of danger” is a consideration in analyzing a claim under the “risk benefit” test and, as well, the ordinary consumer’s expectation is a required consideration under the “consumer expectat…
-
Kidron, Inc. v. Carmona, 665 So. 2d 289 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)…uestion of state law negligence or products liability). Tort reform impacting this question is pending before the 104th Congress. . The lack of a safety device may constitute a design defect for strict liability purposes. In Hobart Corp. v. Seigle, 600 So. 2d 503 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 606 So. 2d 1165 (Fla. 1992), this court affirmed a final judgment against the manufacturer of a meat grinder designed without a child safety guard. Similarly, the court in Light v. Weldarc Co., 569 So. 2d 1302 (Fla. 5th…
-
Selma Jennings v. BIC Corp. & Southland Corp., 181 F.3d 1250 (11th Cir. 1999)…defect of the lighter, i.e., its lack of childproof features, renders it unreasonably dangerous. The defectiveness of a design is determined based on an objective standard, not from the viewpoint of any specific user. See Hobart Corp. v. Siegle, 600 So. 2d 503, 505 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1992). The Hobart court noted that the Florida Standard Jury Instructions allow the jury to be instructed on the consumer expectation test of § 402A, the risk-benefit test, or both. Id. at 504 n. 3. However, “[b]oth tests re…1 / 2
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited (16 total)
- West v. Caterpillar Tractor Co., Inc., 336 So. 2d 80 (Fla. 1976)
- Mark N. Goldschmidt, M.D. v. Jerri Taletha Holman, 571 So. 2d 422 (Fla. 1990)
- Auburn Mach. Works Co., Inc. v. Jones, 366 So. 2d 1167 (Fla. 1979)
- M. David Sims, M.D. v. Brown, 574 So. 2d 131 (Fla. 1991)
- Lasar Mfg. Co., Inc. v. Bachanov, 436 So. 2d 236 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983)
- Trees v. K-Mart Corp., 467 So. 2d 401 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)
- Denis Rety v. Green, 546 So. 2d 410 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)
- 3-M Corporation-McGHAN Med. Reports Div. v. Gay Brown, 475 So. 2d 994 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985)
- City OF Orlando v. Birmingham, 539 So. 2d 1133 (Fla. 1989)
- Friddle v. Seaboard Coast Line R.R. Co. & Harold Jefferson Bridges, 306 So. 2d 97 (Fla. 1974)