Products Liability Law Reporter

A federal district court held that the seller of an above-ground pool may be liable to the family of a toddler who drowned in the pool.

Bestway (USA), Inc., designed and manufactured an above-ground swimming pool and sold it to Rural King Holdings, LLP, which then sold the pool to Mary and Patrick Flake. The pool had a removable ladder, as well as a nylon strap around its circumference. The Flakes’ granddaughter, 2-year-old Ellieanna Justice, used the strap as a step to gain access to the pool and subsequently drowned.

Ellieanna’s parents sued Rural King Holdings, alleging negligence, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, failure to warn, and strict liability. The defense moved to dismiss, arguing the plaintiffs’ claims were precluded under Missouri’s innocent seller statute, Mo. Rev. Stat. §537.762.

Denying the motion, the district court noted that under Missouri law, a plaintiff may bring a products liability claim against any defendant situated within the chain of commerce where the defendant transferred the product, the product was used in a manner reasonably anticipated, and the product was either in a defective condition or unreasonably dangerous. Under the innocent seller rule, the court added, dismissal is warranted where a downstream seller proves another defendant in the lawsuit can provide the plaintiff with a total recovery. Moreover, the court said that dismissal is not proper under the rule unless a defendant shows that its potential liability is based solely on its status as a seller.

The plaintiffs allege that Rural King knew the pool’s design was defective yet failed to warn them of the danger posed by the nylon strap, the court said, concluding that whether Rural King knew of the danger is a question of fact not properly decided on a motion to dismiss. The plaintiffs have adequately alleged that Rural King was aware of the alleged defect in the pool but failed to correct it or warn about it. This claim is not based on the defendant’s status as a seller, the court said, concluding that dismissal under the innocent seller statute would therefore not be proper.

Citation: Justice v. Rural King Holdings, LLP, 2022 WL 2904141 (E.D. Mo. July 22, 2022).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Eric M. Terry, Kenneth J. Brennan, and Tyler J. Schneider, all of Edwardsville, Ill.