Products Liability Law Reporter

James Broome was operating a Mack Truck on a highway when the tractor-trailer suffered a mechanical failure, leaving debris on the highway. Andral Faris struck the debris, which caused him to suffer cervical disk injuries that required surgery. He later began to experience syncopal events resulting from anatomical changes to his neck that led to vertebrobasilar insufficiency.

After his death from unrelated causes, Faris’s wife, on behalf of his estate, sued Mack Trucks, Inc., alleging negligence, strict liability, and breach of warranty. The plaintiff claimed that the defendant negligently failed to manufacture the tractor-trailer in a safe and workmanlike manner and without a defect; failed to inspect the tractor-trailer before putting it in the stream of commerce; and designed the drive shaft components in such a manner that the drive shaft could come free from the drive train while the tractor-trailer was being operated. Specifically, a defective nut on the drive shaft yoke led to the mechanical failure, the plaintiff charged. Suit claimed approximately $314,000 in past medical expenses but did not claim lost income. Faris’s wife also filed a companion case against Mack Trucks, claiming damages for loss of consortium.

Mack Trucks accepted liability, and the parties agreed to a non-jury trial with no appeals. The court awarded $4 million to the estate and $1.5 million to Faris’s wife.

Citation: Faris v. Mack Trucks, Inc., No. 2018-CP-40-04236 (S.C. Ct. Com. Pl. Richland Cty. Feb. 4, 2021).

Plaintiff counsel: J. Christopher Wilson, Bamberg, S.C.; E. Wayne Ridgeway Jr., Columbia, S.C.; and AAJ members R. Alexander Murdaugh and Ronnie L. Crosby, both of Hampton, S.C.