Opinion ID: 2027675
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Motion for Directed Verdict on Tort Theories.

Text: The trial court granted Hoechst's motion for directed verdict on the strict liability and negligence theories on the basis that Tomka sought to recover solely economic losses. The court relied on the principle of law that a plaintiff may not recover economic losses under strict liability or negligence theories if the plaintiff's property or person has not sustained damage. See Nelson v. Todd's Ltd., 426 N.W.2d 120, 123 (Iowa 1988) (purely economic injuries without accompanying physical injury to the user or consumer or to the user or consumer's property are not recoverable under strict liability); Nebraska Innkeepers, Inc. v. Pittsburgh-Des Moines Corp., 345 N.W.2d 124, 126 (Iowa 1984) (a plaintiff who has suffered only economic loss due to another's negligence has not been injured in a manner which is legally cognizable or compensable). Tomka argues for the first time on appeal that he had a property interest in the cattle as a bailee. Therefore, he concludes, he suffered physical injury to his property, the cattle, in addition to the economic losses he sustained. We need not address the bailment issue because we believe that the directed verdict was properly granted even if Tomka had a property interest in the cattle. Although Tomka argues that the cattle were damaged, the evidence showed that the cattle merely gained weight at a slower pace than one would expect of cattle injected with a growth hormone. In fact, Tomka's own expert testified that cattle given dual implants were in good clinical health. [1] We think Tomka's damages fall squarely within the holding of our Nelson case. In Nelson a curing agent for meat purchased by the plaintiffs failed to work. Nelson, 426 N.W.2d at 121. Consequently, substantial quantities of meat sold by the plaintiffs spoiled and were returned by their customers. Id. The plaintiffs sought recovery from the manufacturer of the curing agent under theories of strict liability and breach of express warranty. Id. The trial court submitted both theories to the jury which returned a verdict in plaintiffs' favor. Id. On appeal, we held that the trial court erred in submitting both theories to the jury. Id. at 125. In analyzing whether contract law or tort law applied, we focused not on the presence or absence of physical harm but on whether the defect in the product was dangerous to the user. Id. at 122-25. We quoted with approval from an Illinois case: We see no reason to make the presence or absence of physical harm the determining factor; the distinguishing central feature of economic loss is not its purely physical characteristic, but its relation to what the product was supposed to accomplish. For example, if a fire alarm fails to work and a building burns down, that is `economic loss' even though the building was physically harmed; but if the fire is caused by a short circuit in the fire alarm itself, that is not economic loss. Id. at 124 (quoting Fireman's Fund Am. Ins. Cos. v. Burns Elec. Security Serv., 93 Ill.App.3d 298, 48 Ill.Dec. 729, 731, 417 N.E.2d 131, 133 (1981)). In other words, contract law protects a purchaser's expectation interest that the product received will be fit for its intended use. Moorman Mfg. Co. v. National Tank Co., 91 Ill.2d 69, 61 Ill.Dec. 746, 751, 435 N.E.2d 443, 448 (1982); Northridge Co. v. W.R. Grace & Co., 162 Wis.2d 918, 471 N.W.2d 179, 185 (1991). The essence of products liability law is that the plaintiff has been exposed, through a dangerous product, to a risk of injury to his person or property. Moorman Mfg. Co., 435 N.E.2d at 448; Northridge Co., 471 N.W.2d at 185. As the Wisconsin Supreme Court summarized, defects of suitability and quality are redressed through contract actions and safety hazards through tort actions. Northridge Co., 471 N.W.2d at 185. We think the damage sustained by Tomka here clearly falls within contract-warranty theories, not tort theories. As Tomka's own attorney said, [T]his product is designed here to promote growth in cattle and yet we are alleging that the product failed to do that. Tort law does not encompass this type of damage and therefore, the trial court properly directed a verdict on Tomka's strict liability and negligence theories. [2] G & M Farms v. Funk Irrigation Co., 119 Idaho 514, 808 P.2d 851, 864 (1991) (court affirmed dismissal of negligent misrepresentation claim alleging that manufacturer failed to disclose that irrigation system could not meet plaintiff's needs, holding that remedy for purely economic damages falls within implied warranty, not tort).