Mitchell Taraschi, Chair of Connell Foley's Product Liability and Tort Law Group, and Alexander Gacos, an Associate in the Group, authored the article "Manufacturer Can Be Strictly Liable for Products Made and Sold by Others, Says NJ Supreme Court," published in the New Jersey Law Journal.
The article discusses the recent New Jersey Supreme Court decision Whelan v. Armstrong Int’l, Inc. decided this past summer. The hot-button product liability issue addressed by this case: whether the manufacturer of a product that has an asbestos-containing replacement part that causes injury may be liable even if the manufacturer itself did not manufacture or supply the replacement part. The Whelan court joined several other courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, which have held that a manufacturer may be liable in certain circumstances for an injury caused by an asbestos-containing replacement part even if it did not make or sell that part. This holding contrasts with other state courts that have recognized the so-called “bare metal defense” and have held that a manufacturer may not be liable for asbestos-containing replacement parts it neither manufactured nor sold. This principal of expanding liability to products not manufactured or sold by a company should be of great concern to any product manufacturer.
Please visit the New Jersey Law Journal website to read the full article (subscription may be required).
