Case Name: Anne Shirley THOMPSON, et al., Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. Lloyd H. TUGGLE, et al., Defendants-Appellants
Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Louisiana
Decision Date: 1986-03-18
Citations: 486 So. 2d 144
Docket Number: No. 84-856
Parties: Anne Shirley THOMPSON, et al., Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. Lloyd H. TUGGLE, et al., Defendants-Appellants.
Judges: Before DOMENGEAUX, GUIDRY, FOR-ET, STOKER and KNOLL, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 486
Pages: 144–166

Head Matter:
Anne Shirley THOMPSON, et al., Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. Lloyd H. TUGGLE, et al., Defendants-Appellants.
No. 84-856.
Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.
March 18, 1986.
Rehearing Denied April 15, 1986.
Writ Denied June 13, 1986.
Phillip L. McIntosh, Monroe, of Snelling, Breard, Sartor, Inabnett & Trascher, for defendants-appellants.
Russell T. Tritico, Raggio, Cappel, Cho-zen & Berniard, Paul Foreman, Lake Charles, for plaintiffs-appellees.
Before DOMENGEAUX, GUIDRY, FOR-ET, STOKER and KNOLL, JJ.

Opinion:
KNOLL, Judge.
In this products liability case, one of the defendants, Beard-Poulan Division of Emerson Electric Company (Poulan), appeals the trial court's judgment awarding the widow and daughter of Howard Thompson (plaintiffs) $245,800 and $10,000 respectively for his wrongful death, which occurred when the Poulan Model 4200 bow blade chain saw he was using kicked back into his neck and severed his jugular vein. The plaintiffs also brought this action against Lloyd Tuggle, who was the senior vice-president in charge of engineering for Pou-lan and was responsible for the design and development of the bow saw in question. The trial court dismissed plaintiffs' claim against Tuggle, finding that Poulan's decision to forego the installation of chain brakes on chain saws sold in this country was a marketing decision, not an engineering decision, for which Tuggle was not responsible. In answer to the appeal, plaintiffs do not question this determination, but ask for an increase in damages.
Georgia Casualty & Surety Company intervened to recover workmen's compensation benefits it paid to plaintiffs. All parties stipulated that it was entitled to $30,-277.15 to be paid in preference out of any award made to plaintiffs; the trial court entered judgment accordingly.
Plaintiffs' claim against Poulan is based on negligence and, in the alternative, strict liability. Plaintiffs contend that the chain saw was defective because it was not equipped with a chain brake, and further, that the manufacturer failed to adequately warn of the dangers associated with kickback. Plaintiffs answer the appeal, seeking an increase in damages.
Poulan contends on appeal that the trial court erred in finding that: (1) Thompson's fatal injuries were caused by kickback of his saw and that a chain brake, which Pou-lan negligently failed to incorporate in its chain saw design, would have been effective in preventing the fatality; (2) the kickback phenomenon is a defect which renders chain saws unreasonably dangerous; (3) Poulan had a duty to warn Thompson of the dangers associated with kickback, and that Poulan's warnings were inadequate; and (4) Thompson was guilty of neither contributory negligence nor assumption of the risk.
We amend to increase quantum and, as amended, affirm, finding no manifest error in the trial court's determinations.
FACTS
Howard Thompson, 57 years of age, was a part-time professional pulpwood cutter with approximately five years experience. He was also a full-time employee of the Many Police Department where he worked from midnight until 8:00 a.m. Upon completion of his shift, he cut pulpwood for six to seven hours. This had been his routine for the past five years. Prior to the accident, Thompson had been using a power bow saw for at least four years.
On April 7, 1981, Thompson worked the midnight to 8:00 a.m. shift with the police department and then went home. Shortly thereafter, he left his home, picked up his wood stacker, Isiah Lynch, and went to a wood yard in Fisher, Louisiana, where he trimmed a load of pulpwood using a Model 4200 Poulan chain saw equipped with a bow guide; the pulpwood logs were too long to be accepted by the wood yard and, therefore, had to be trimmed. Thompson and Lynch then went to the woods to trim another load of wood. In both instances, the logs were trimmed while loaded on the pulpwood truck.
Using his truck, Thompson lowered the tailgate of his pickup truck and backed up to the pulpwood truck so that the trucks were positioned end to end, approximately 2 to 2V2 feet apart. He then positioned himself on the tailgate of his pickup truck to begin cutting.
Thompson instructed Lynch to pick up the blocks of wood that fell to the ground as he trimmed the logs. There were wood blocks on the ground when they arrived so Lynch began to pick them up. When Thompson started his chain saw, Lynch noticed that the cap for the oil tank was off and oil was spilling. Thompson turned the saw off, got off of the tailgate, wiped the oil he had spilled, put sawdust on the tailgate where he had spilled oil, refilled the oil reservoir and replaced the cap. He then got back on the tailgate, on the passenger side of the pulpwood truck and the driver's side of his pickup truck, and restarted the bow saw. He proceeded to trim the logs, standing with his left leg on the bed of the pickup truck and his right leg extended forward with his right foot on the right rear dual tires of the pulpwood truck. The exact position of the bow saw while Thompson was trimming the pulpwood is not established by the evidence; however, the saw had to be extended forward in order for him to trim the logs in front of him.
Lynch was picking up blocks on the same side of the trucks where Thompson was trimming logs. When he realized that no blocks were falling to the ground, Lynch looked up and observed Thompson standing with his left hand over his eyes and the bow saw, still running, in his right hand. Blood was spurting from Thompson's neck. As Thompson began to fall, Lynch ran to call Lloyd Saveli, the pulpwood contractor who employed Thompson. When Saveli saw Thompson, Thompson was beginning to fall. His body was sagging and beginning to tilt. At first Saveli thought Thompson was going to squat or sit down. Instead Thompson fell forward against the back stake of the pulpwood truck and slid down. He then fell to the ground and rolled over onto his back. Saveli ran to Thompson, picked up one of his legs, moved the saw that was idling and turned the engine off. Apparently no one witnessed the chain saw make contact with Thompson's body. He was cut from his left ear to his right collar bone, severing the jugular vein. He died before the ambulance arrived.
CAUSATION
The burden of proving causation in products liability eases was clearly stated in DeBattista v. Argonaut-Southwest Ins. Co., 403 So.2d 26 (La.1981) as follows:
"[The] plaintiffs' burden is to prove causation by a preponderance of the evidence. This burden may be met either by direct or, as in this case, by circumstantial evidence. Jordan v. Travelers Ins. Co., 257 La. 995, 245 So.2d 151 (1971); Naquin v. Marquette Cas. Co., 244 La. 569, 153 So.2d 395 (1963).
Taken as a whole, circumstantial evidence must exclude other reasonable hypotheses with a fair amount of certainty. This does not mean, however, that it must negate all other possible causes. Otherwise, the mere identification by the record of another possibility, although not shown to be causally active, would break the chain of causation. Weber v. Fidelity & Cas. Ins. Co. of N.Y., 259 La. 599, 608-09, 250 So.2d 754, 757 (1971)."
When there is evidence before the trier of fact which, upon its reasonable evaluation of credibility, furnishes a reasonable factual basis for its findings, a reviewing court should not disturb this factual finding in the absence of manifest error. Arceneaux v. Domingue, 365 So.2d 1330 (La.1978). The cause-in-fact of an injury is a factual question and the trial court's determination will not be disturbed unless it is manifestly erroneous. Prudhomme v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co., 465 So.2d 141 (La. App. 3rd Cir.1985), writ denied, 467 So.2d 1132 (La.1985).
In the instant case the trial court found that Thompson's fatal injury was caused by kickback, which occurred when the bow saw came into contact with a log behind the log he was trimming at the time. Poulan objects to this finding on the basis that there was no direct evidence that kickback caused the injury. It is well settled that the plaintiffs may meet their burden of proof by circumstantial evidence. DeBattista, supra. Because no one witnessed the bow saw come into contact with Thompson's body or what caused it, the trial court carefully and conscientiously analyzed the testimonies of the persons who immediately responded to the accident: Isiah Lynch, his wood stacker, testified that Thompson was in a standing position and had cut several pieces of wood on the lower side of the pulpwood truck just prior to the accident; Lloyd Saveli, his employer, testified that he observed the location of the last log Thompson cut and that it was about even with Thompson's face; and Michael Jones, the emergency medical technician who investigated the accident, observed the fresh cut mark on the last log Thompson began cutting and its approximate location, and further observed Thompson's partial shoe print on the right rear dual wheel of the pulpwood truck. In addressing various other theories of causation proposed by Poulan, the trial court methodically stated:
"Defendants' counsel suggests several other possible causes of Thompson's fatal injury, all unrealted [sic] to any kick-back action by the bow saw. He suggests that Thompson was off-balance while operating the saw on this occasion, due to the alleged over extension [sic] of his right leg which was necessary for him to get the saw in contact with the pulpwood he was trimming and was unable to sufficiently control the saw, which was operating normally, resulting in the saw striking his body; that Thompson was holding the saw up at an excessive height while trimming the pulpwood, resulting in his inability to maintain proper control of the saw, which was operating normally, that Thompson's alleged fatigue, resulting from his having worked as a policeman the previous night hours caused him to lose control of the chain saw, resulting in the fatal injury to him. If, as suggested, Thompson's body was off-balance or unbalanced while he was trimming the pulpwood it seems to me that he would have fallen while he was in such an off-balance or unbalanced position, rather than from a standing, flatfooted position as Isaiah Lynch testified. It does not seem very likely that Thompson could have been able to come to that body position before falling had he been in an off-balance or unbalanced position while trimming the pulpwood. Nor does it seem likely, from the available evidence, that Thompson was operating the saw at an excessive height, causing him to lose control of the saw. When Isaiah Lynch saw Thompson, just before he fell from the pickup truck, Thompson was holding the saw down by his side. This does not indicate either that Thompson dropped the saw on his neck during its normal operation or that Thompson dropped the saw and then fell on it. I see no other way the saw could have come in contact with Thompson's neck other than through Thompson dropping the saw on his neck or falling on the saw after dropping it, if it is assumed that no kick-back of the saw occurred.
The likelihood of Thompson being in an off-balance or unbalanced position while trimming the pulpwood or operating the saw at an excessive height for proper control of the saw is further discounted by the testimony of Mike Jones, who is an emergency medical technician and Chief of Police of the Town of Florien, and responded to the call for assistance in the accident. He also simulated Thompson's position and had no problem with his balance when his feet were placed in the same position of Thompson's while he was trimming the pulpwood logs. (See Transcript, Pp. 91-93.).
Thompson's fatal injury occurred only a short while after he began his workday as a wood cutter. Thus, even though he had just completed a shift as a policeman, it does not seem likely to me that he was fatigued at the time of the accident. Thompson had held down both these jobs for some time and there is no evidence that his performance as a wood cutter suffered from his dual employment. Thus, it seems much more likely that Thompson's fatal accident was caused by the kickback of the saw, instead of the other non-kick-back related causes suggested by counsel for defendants. "
The record clearly supports the trial court did not manifestly err in its factual determinations. We, therefore, conclude that Thompson's fatal injury was caused by kickback.
DEFECT IN DESIGN
Poulan contends that kickback does not render a saw unreasonably dangerous to normal use, and further, that its failure to install a chain brake did not constitute a defect because a chain brake would not have prevented Thompson's fatal injury. Poulan further contends that the trial court erred in disregarding its expert testimony and various studies which indicate that chain brakes are not effective.
Lanclos v. Rockwell International Corp., 470 So.2d 924 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1985), writ denied, 477 So.2d 87 (La.1985), sets forth Louisiana law of negligence and strict liability in products liability cases as follows:
"A manufacturer of a product may be held liable for injuries caused by their product, without any particular act of negligence being proven, if a plaintiff shows: (1) that the product was in normal use; (2) there was a defect in the product, i.e., the product was unreasonably dangerous in that use; and (3) that the plaintiffs injuries were caused by the defect. Defenses to a products liability claim include the negative of any of the three items above plus plaintiffs assumption of the risk. Oatis v. Catalytic, Inc., 433 So.2d 328 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1983), writs denied, 441 So.2d 210 and 441 So.2d 215; Weber v. Fidelity & Casualty Insurance Company of N.Y., 259 La. 599, 250 So.2d 754 (La.1971).
If the product is proven defective by reason of its hazard to normal use, the plaintiff does not need to prove any particular negligence by the manufacturer. Weber, supra, 250 So.2d at 756. 'Unreasonably dangerous' means simply that the article which injured the plaintiff was dangerous to an extent beyond that which would be contemplated by an ordinary consumer. De-Battista v. Argonaut-Southwest Ins. Co., 403 So.2d 26 (La.1981). Even though use of the term 'unreasonably dangerous'serves to prevent the manufacturer from being treated as an insurer of its products, that term does not burden the injured plaintiff with proof of an element of negligence. De-Battista, supra, at 31.
In Entrevia v. Hood, 427 So.2d 1146 (La.1983), the Supreme Court stated: 'The unreasonable risk of harm criterion, however, is not a simple rule of law which may be applied mechanically to the facts of a case. It is a concept employed by this court to symbolize the judicial process required by the civil code.

As this court has noted in relation to other forms of strict liability under the civil code, the activities of man for which he may be liable without acting negligently are to be determined after a study of the law and customs, a balancing of claims and interests, a weighing of the risk and the gravity of harm, and a consideration of individual and societal rights and obligations. Langlois v. Allied Chemical Corporation, 258 La. 1067, 1084, 249 So.2d 133, 140 (1971).
The judicial process involved in deciding whether a risk is unreasonable un der Article 2317 is similar to that employed in determining whether a risk is unreasonable in a traditional negligence problem, Hunt v. City Stores Inc., 387 So.2d 585 (La.1980), and in deciding the scope of duty or legal cause under the duty/risk analysis. Hill v. Lundin Associates, Inc., 260 La. 542, 256 So.2d 620 (1972); Green, The Causal Relation Issue, 60 Mich.L.Rev. 543, 563 (1962). This is not because strict liability under Article 2317 is equivalent to liability for negligence, but because in both delictual areas the judge is called upon to decide questions of social utility that require him to consider the particular case in terms of moral, social, and economic considerations, in the same way that the legislator finds the standards or patterns of utility and morals in the life of the community. B. Cardozo, The Nature of the Judicial Process, at p. 105 (1921); See also, Green, The Causal Relation Issue, 60 Mich.L.Rev. 543 (1962). ' #
A design that presents unreasonable hazards within the range of the equipment's forseeable uses imposes an additional duty on the designer-manufacturer to provide adequate guards against those hazards. Straley v. Calongne Drayage & Storage, Inc., 346 So.2d 171 (La.1977)."
The issue of defective design is factual and depends on the circumstances of each case. Nailor v. International Harvester Co., 430 So.2d 784 (La.App. 5th Cir.1983), writ denied, 437 So.2d 1148 (La.1983).
It is undisputed that kickback occurs in the normal use of chain saws, despite various anti-kickback devices that Poulan and other manufacturers incorporate into their saws. The trial court in the instant case found that Poulan's chain saws are defective because the kickback phenomenon renders the saw unreasonably dangerous to normal use. The danger is obvious, especially to professional woodcutters, most of whom have experienced kickback on several occasions. We find Pou-lan's bow saw was defectively designed, not because of the kickback phenomenon, but because of Poulan's failure to provide a safety device, i.e., the chain brake.
The record shows that a chain brake is standard equipment on all McCul-loch chain saws sold in this country and abroad. It is only an option on Poulan chain saws sold in this country but is standard equipment on Poulan saws sold in European countries. Experts for Poulan testified that the chain brake does not stop the movement of the chain in sufficient time to prevent injury, that the chain brake will not stand up to the hostile environment to which chain saws are generally exposed, and that its promoting or advertising the chain brake would lull the users of chain saws into a false sense of security. Plaintiffs' experts testified that a chain brake would have prevented, or at least minimized, Thompson's injury. Where the testimony of the expert witnesses differs, it is largely a matter of fact for the trier of fact to determine the most credible evidence, and such finding will not be disturbed on appeal unless manifest error appears in the record. Nailor v. International Harvester Co., supra. We find the record supports the trial court's finding that a chain brake would have prevented Thompson's fatal injury; therefore, we conclude that the defective design which caused Thompson's death was Poulan's failure to incorporate a chain brake in the design of the bow saw.
DUTY TO WARN
Poulan contends the trial court erred in finding that Poulan had a duty to warn of kickback dangers, even though professional woodcutters are the usual purchasers of bow saws, and further erred in concluding that Poulan's warnings were inadequate.
Under Louisiana law, a manufacturer of a potentially dangerous instrumentality such as a chain saw has a duty to instruct reasonably forseeable users of their product with regard to its safe use. Poland v. Beaird-Poulan, 483 F.Supp. 1256 (W.D.La.1980); Williams v. Allied Chemical Corporation, 270 So.2d 157 (La. App. 1st Cir.1972), writs refused, 271 So.2d 875 (La.1973).
In the instant case, Poulan introduced into evidence the owner's manual for the Model 4200 bow saw. The manual provides in pertinent part:
"Guard against kickback. Kickback is the upward motion of the guide bar which occurs when the saw chain at the nose of the guide bar contacts an object. Kickback can lead to dangerous loss of control of the chain saw.
TO AVOID KICKBACK:
Hold the chain saw firmly with both hands. Don't over reach. Don't let the nose of the guide bar contact a log, branch, ground or any other obstruction. Cut at high engine speeds. Don't cut above shoulder height. Follow manufacturer's sharpening and maintenance instructions for the saw chain."
The trial court found the aforementioned warnings inadequate under the circumstances, and explained:
"Since kickbacks apparently cannot be eliminated with the technology presently available to the chain saw industry, and defendants have chosen not to install chain brakes on all their saws, the duty to warn of kickback dangers exists, even though professional wood cutters are the usual purchasers of bow saws. The evidence shows that even with the exercise of due diligence by saw operators and their knowledge of the kickback phenomenon, they still occur. The warnings prepared by defendants seem to create the impression that kickbacks can be eliminated or controlled by the saw operator. This is not very realistic in view of the evidence that kickbacks are practically inevitable. Nor do they seriously convey the message that kickbacks can cause serious injury or death. Moreover, the omission of the warnings in the bow guide kit purchased at random, over the counter, in Lake Charles raises serious doubts that they will be received by the purchasers of these kits, or that they were received by Thompson when he purchased his bow guide kit. Thus, it cannot be assumed that Thompson even received these inadequate warnings."
We find the record supports the trial court's conclusion that kickbacks are practically inevitable. However, we need not consider Poulan's argument that the warnings were adequate since we find the absence of a chain break rendered the bow saw defective, therefore, Poulan is liable. In accord see Corrine Nicholas v. Homelite Corporation, 780 F.2d 1150 (5th Cir.1986).
DEFENSES
Poulan contends that Thompson voluntarily assumed the risk of injury, and was contributorily negligent. The trial judge concluded that the defense of assumption of the risk was inapplicable because, although Thompson was aware that chain saws can kick back, he did not have full knowledge of the magnitude of the risks and dangers of kickback.
Assumption of the risk is a question of fact determined by an evaluation of the plaintiff's subjective knowledge in each case. The proof required for the application of the assumption of the risk defense consists of three elements: (1) the plaintiff must have actual knowledge of the dangerous condition; (2) there must be appreciation of its dangerous quality; and (3) there must be a voluntary assumption of the danger. Dorry v. Lafleur, 399 So.2d 559 (La.1981). The defendants bear the burden of proving the defense of assumption of the risk. McInnis v. Fireman's Fund Ins. Co., 322 So.2d 155 (La.1975).
Poulan argues that as a professional woodcutter, Thompson must have known of the dangers of kickback, including the risk of serious injury when the saw is improperly used to cut stacked pulpwood logs.
We find no manifest error in trial court rejecting the defense of assumption of the risk. Further, the record shows that Poulan failed to prove that Thompson had actual knowledge of a potentially fatal condition. The record preponderates that Thompson's use of the chain saw was reasonable.
Poulan next contends that the trial court erred in failing to find Thompson eontribu-torily negligent.
In Bell v. Jet Wheel Blast, Div. of Ervin Ind., 462 So.2d 166 (La.1985), the Supreme Court rejected the defense of contributory negligence as a complete bar in products liability cases, and allowed a reduction of plaintiff's recovery in certain cases. This holding was reaffirmed in Landos, supra. Whether a plaintiff's recovery should be reduced in a products liability case is decided on a case by case basis. McCaskill v. Welch, 463 So.2d 942 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1985), writ denied, 466 So.2d 469 (La.1985).
In analyzing the facts of the case sub judice, even if we would have found Thompson contributorily negligent, in light of Bell, we find that no useful social purpose would be served by reducing plaintiffs' recovery. It is clear that other professional woodcutters are aware of the hazards associated with the use of the saw. Furthermore, it is clear that a reduction in plaintiffs' recovery would only reduce the manufacturer's incentive to market a safer saw.
Thompson's use of the saw was as an integral part of his day to day work. His use of the saw was repetitive, and in field conditions, which were less than ideal. Therefore, we find no error in the trial court's rejection of this defense.
QUANTUM
In their answer to this appeal Anne Shirley Thompson and Kallye Ann Thompson (plaintiffs) contend the trial court's damage award of $255,800 is inadequate. Poulan argues that the trial court's award is within its sound discretion.
It is well established that before an appellate court can disturb a trial court's award of damages, the record must clearly show that the trier of fact abused its discretion. Coco v. Winston Induatries, Inc., 341 So.2d 332 (La.1976). In Coco the Supreme Court stated:
"Only after making the finding that the record supports that the lower court abused its much discretion can the appellate court disturb the award, and then only to the extent of lowering it (or raising it) to the highest (or lowest) point which is reasonably within the discretion afforded that court, [citations omitted] It is never appropriate for a Court of Appeal, having found that the trial court has abused its discretion, simply to decide what it considers an appropriate award on the basis of the evidence."
To properly determine whether a quantum award can be upheld revolves around a determination of whether the facts and circumstances peculiar to this case and these individuals reasonably support the trial judge's choice. Schexnayder v. Carpenter, 346 So.2d 196 (La.1977).
In the present case the trial judge itemized his award of damages, as follows:
"Loss of wages, past & future $220,800
Anne Thompsons loss of love, affection & companionship 25,000
Kellye Thompson's loss of love, affection & companionship 10,000"
Additionally, Georgia Casualty, the workmen's compensation carrier, was recognized as being entitled to reimbursement from Anne and Kallye Thompson for $30,-277.15. Therefore Anne and Kallye Thompson realized $225,522.85 from the damage award. The trial court's award of loss of wages, past and future, is not questioned. After examining the record we conclude that the trial judge's awards in general damages to Anne and Kallye Thompson constituted an abuse of discretion.
The record reflects an extremely close family relationship between the decedent, his wife of 37 years, Anne, and their adopted daughter, Kallye. Though Kallye was 19 years of age at the time of her father's death, she lived at home and had a closer relationship with her father than with her mother. The family worked hard together, and especially enjoyed each other's company attending church, fishing and playing baseball.
In making damage awards to spouses we have traditionally looked to the closeness of their relationship, and we particularly have considered whether the spouses legally separated at any time during their marriage. See Meche v. Gulf States Utilities Co., 444 So.2d 137 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1983); Faulk v. Schlumberger Well Services, 412 So.2d 162 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1982); Hardy v. State, Through Dept. of Highways, 404 So.2d 981 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1981), writs denied, 407 So.2d 741 (La.1981). There was no evidence of a separation at any time during this marriage. Accordingly, we conclude that considering the loving relationship Anne had with her husband of 37 years, $50,000 was the lowest amount within the discretion afforded the trial court which Anne Thompson could have received. Likewise Kallye had a close relationship with her father, and, although she held a full time job, chose to live at home with her family. Under these circumstances we conclude that $20,000 was the lowest amount Kallye could have received.
DECREE
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the trial court is amended to increase the awards for loss of love and affection to $50,000 for Anne Shirley Thompson, and $20,000 for Kallye Ann Thompson, together with legal interest from the date of judicial demand until paid. In all other respects the judgment of the trial court is affirmed. Costs of this appeal are assessed against Beard-Poulan Division of Emerson Electric Company.
AMENDED, AND AFFIRMED AS AMENDED AND RENDERED.
STOKER, J., dissents and will assign reasons.
DOMENGEAUX, J., dissents for the reasons assigned by STOKER, J.