Opinion ID: 3015153
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: References to OSHA Standards

Text: Forrest also seeks a new trial on the basis of the alleged improper introduction of evidence concerning OSHA standards by Beloit during the course of the trial. A product manufacturer in Pennsylvania has a non-delegable duty to provide a safe product. See Walton v. Avco Corp., 610 A.2d 454, 458 (Pa. 1992). Thus, a manufacturer in a products liability action may 18 not invoke industry or OSHA standards to argue that the plaintiff’s employer, rather than the manufacturer, had the responsibility to provide the equipment or instructions necessary to make a product safe for its intended use. See Sheehan v. Cincinnati Shaper Co., 555 A.2d 1352, 1355 (Pa. Super. 1989); Majdic v. Cincinnati Machine Co., 537 A.2d 334, 336-38 (Pa. Super. 1988). However, this rule is of limited applicability here, because the District Court did not admit OSHA and industry standard evidence for such purposes. Indeed, the first OSHA reference cited by Forrest occurred in a question directed to Forrest’s expert, Widas, during cross-examination. Forrest objected, a lengthy sidebar ensued, and the District Court directed Beloit’s counsel to proceed without referencing Jefferson-Smurfit’s citation for an OSHA violation in connection with Forrest’s accident. The District Court also agreed to strike from the record the OSHA references that had occurred thus far. Notably, Forrest did not move for a mistrial. We see no error in the District Court’s actions, and thus Forrest’s appeal with respect to this issue lacks merit.6 6 Forrest’s appeal also notes that Beloit’s trial counsel characterized the difference between Widas’s draft expert report and his final expert report as involving the removal of “all references to the employer’s liability in this case.” We need not decide whether this reference may have been improper or prejudicial in light of Pennsylvania’s substantive law concerning the non-delegable duties of a product manufacturer. Forrest did not object to the statement at trial, and thus the issue is waived. See Medical Protective Co. v. Watkins, 198 F.3d 100, 105 n.3 (3d Cir. 1999); Waldorf, 142 F.3d at 19