Opinion ID: 510648
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Elements of a Crashworthiness Case

Text: 12 On the surface, proving a strict liability case under Pennsylvania law appears simplistic: Was the product defective and was the defect the proximate cause of the injury? Berkebile v. Brantly Helicopter Corp., 462 Pa. 83, 337 A.2d 893 (1975). This general expression, however, disguises the intricacies of its exercise, particularly when crashworthiness, a type of defect, is at issue. 1 13 In crashworthy cases three elements must be established: (1) proof of an alternative safer design, practicable under the circumstances; (2) the resulting injuries if the safer design had been used; and, as a corollary to the second element, (3) the extent of the enhanced injuries attributable to the defective design. Huddell v. Levin, 537 F.2d 726 (3d Cir.1976). 14 A manufacturer is required to design a product reasonably fit for its intended use. The concept which distinguishes a crashworthiness case is that the manufacturer's liability is not artificially cut off simply because the manufacturer did not intend that its product be involved in a collision. The doctrine extends liability to situations in which the defect did not cause the accident or initial impact, but rather increased the severity of the injury over that which would have occurred absent the defective design. Barris v. Bob's Drag Chutes & Safety Equipment, Inc., 685 F.2d 94, 99 (3d Cir.1982). 15 Pennsylvania law, as predicted by the federal courts sitting in diversity, has dictated that the manufacturer must take into consideration in the design and manufacture of its product, the possibility that a product may be involved in an accident not of its own making. Jeng v. Witters, 452 F.Supp. 1349 (M.D.Pa.1978), aff'd, 591 F.2d 1335 (3d Cir.1979). 2 16 Our review of the pleadings and trial record leads us to conclude that the concept of crashworthiness was present throughout the duration of the case. Although neither the term crashworthiness nor buzz words conjuring up the theory appeared in Roe's complaint, the general allegations concerning the defective condition of the tractor were sufficient to place the requisite elements of crashworthiness at issue. Crashworthiness is merely a subset of strict liability, and considering the liberal pleading philosophy of the federal rules, the complaint as pled would not preclude evidence of crashworthiness from being introduced in this case. 17 The evidence at trial was a clear attempt to prove liability based on lack of crashworthiness. Expert testimony on behalf of Roe was presented by John Sevart, president and chief engineer of a company that operates in the area of machine design, testing and certification of mechanical machinery. Sevart testified that the intended purpose of the ROPS was to prevent injury in the event of a tractor upset. The expert opined that since there was no way to design a tractor which would not upset, and considering the serious accidents which occur when a tractor does in fact roll over, the ROPS was necessary to protect the operator in the event of an accident. 18 Sevart next recounted to the jury his reconstruction of the accident. He surmised that the tractor went over a ledge of rock and then made a 270 degree roll, which meant that the tractor had rolled over, landed on its left side and went upside down and came back on its right side where it came to rest with Gordon Roe pinned under its fender. Sevart then gave his professional opinion, within a reasonable degree of engineering certainty, that if the tractor had been equipped with the ROPS, the roll of the vehicle would have been limited to 90 degrees. The witness was not, however, permitted to answer the follow-up question concerning whether he had arrived at an opinion as to the extent of the injuries sustained if the tractor had been equipped with the ROPS. 19 Deere's expert also testified as to the effectiveness of the ROPS in preventing serious injury in the event of a tractor upset. He, however, opined that the ROPS would not have prevented the 270 degree roll which occurred. 20 Did the pleadings and evidence establish a prima facie crashworthiness case under the requisites of Huddell v. Levin? 3 The first element--the availability of a practicable safer design--was basically uncontested. 4 Proof of the second requisite, the resulting injuries if the safer design theory had been used, and the third corollary factor, the extent of exacerbation attributable to the unsafe design, are less emphatically present. We conclude, however, that the evidence which was admitted concerning the effectiveness of the ROPS was sufficient for the trier of fact to draw the necessary inferences, i.e., that if the tractor had not rolled over and crushed Roe, he would not have sustained the fatal injuries. To reach this conclusion would not require an engineer's expertise. It was not contested that the injuries were caused by the pinning of Roe's body under the tractor, nor was it challenged that these injuries were the cause of death. What probably occurred during the accident, an event to which Sevart did testify, was a question of fact within the jury's province. We thus conclude that the evidence admitted adequately presented a crashworthiness case to the jury. 21 We turn now to the converse argument that certain evidence designed to advance this theory was improperly excluded by the trial judge.