Opinion ID: 3150568
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether Union Carbide Was Entitled

Text: to a Directed Verdict on the Design Defect Claim Next, Aubin asserts that the Third District erred when it held that Aubin failed to present sufficient evidence that the defective design of SG-210 Calidria caused Aubin’s harm and thus Union Carbide was entitled to a directed verdict on - 41 - the design defect claim. While the Third District concluded that Aubin presented sufficient evidence to prove that SG-210 Calidria was a “designed” product and that the design of SG-210 Calidria was “defective,” the Third District nevertheless concluded that Aubin did not establish causation under the Third Restatement in light of the fact that Aubin “failed to introduce any evidence suggesting SG-210 Calidria was more dangerous than raw chrysotile asbestos with respect to the contraction of cancer or peritoneal mesothelioma.” Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 890. We conclude that the Third District improperly merged the Third Restatement’s definition of design defect with causation, conflating the elements of those two prongs. The causation prong, under both the Second Restatement and the Third Restatement, simply applies the general rules of causation, requiring the plaintiff to show that the defect caused the injury or harm alleged. See, e.g., Liggett Grp., 973 So. 2d at 475 (holding that under the Second Restatement, plaintiffs must demonstrate “[f]irst, that the product is defective; and, second, that such defect caused plaintiff’s injuries”); Restatement (Third) of Torts: Prod. Liab. § 15 (1998) (“Whether a product defect caused harm to persons or property is determined by the prevailing rules and principles governing causation in tort.”). Likewise, in the newly adopted standard jury instructions, legal causation in a products liability case is explained as “[A defect in a product] [Negligence] is a legal cause of [loss] [injury] [or] [damage] if it directly and in natural and - 42 - continuous sequence produces or contributes substantially to producing such [loss] [injury] [or] [damage], so that it can reasonably be said that, but for the [defect] [negligence], the [loss] [injury] [or] [damage] would not have occurred.” In re Std. Jury Instr. in Civ. Cases—Report No. 13-01, 160 So. 3d at 877. However, in analyzing causation, the Third District conflated this element with the Third Restatement’s definition of a design defect, requiring a plaintiff to show that SG-210 Calidria asbestos was more dangerous than raw asbestos in causing mesothelioma. First, the use of the Third Restatement’s definition of a design defect is contrary to the consumer expectations test, as set forth in the Second Restatement. Under the consumer expectations test, a product is considered to be defective “where the product is, at the time it leaves the seller’s hands, in a condition not contemplated by the ultimate consumer, which will be unreasonably dangerous to him.” Restatement (Second) of Torts § 402A cmt. g. (1965). Second, causation addresses only whether the defect caused the harm. The proper test of causation is not to compare the dangerousness of one product with another unreasonably dangerous product. Our review of the record demonstrates that the trial court correctly refused to direct a verdict for Union Carbide on its design defect claim because Aubin did in fact present sufficient evidence on causation to allow this claim to be considered by the jury. In applying the correct standard for causation, Aubin was merely - 43 - required to show that the defective design of the SG-210 Calidria directly and in natural and continuous sequence produced or contributed substantially to producing Aubin’s mesothelioma, so that it can reasonably be said that, but for the defect, the injury would not have occurred. The evidence presented at trial demonstrated that, as to the design of the SG210 Calidria, Union Carbide specifically mined the short fiber form of chrysotile asbestos and subjected this asbestos to a “proprietary manufacturing process” in order to yield “essentially a pure asbestos fiber content” that had a unique shape and physical structure. Union Carbide then created different grades based on the asbestos, including a resin grade for nonaqueous markets and a standard grade. SG-210 Calidria was distinctive in that it was subjected to the centrifuge process twice, which was significant to the manufacturing process, given that the more times chrysotile asbestos passed through this system, the more the fibers were pulled apart from each other, thereby increasing the efficiency of the product. This material, unlike raw asbestos, was specifically designed to be incorporated into such products as joint compounds and texture sprays. Further, Union Carbide was aware that using joint compounds and texture sprays, for which SG-210 Calidria was produced, would create respirable dust and thus be a more likely cause of both asbestosis and mesothelioma. Aubin presented expert testimony that opined - 44 - exposure to respirable Calidria fibers causes mesothelioma. This evidence was sufficient to permit the jury to make the determination pertaining to causation. Because we conclude that Aubin presented sufficient evidence to avoid a directed verdict on causation, the Third District erred as a matter of law in taking this issue away from the jury. See Cox v. St. Josephs Hosp., 71 So. 3d 795, 800-01 (Fla. 2011). III. Whether the Third District Erred in Determining that Union Carbide Was Entitled to Jury Instructions on Failure to Warn End Users In the final issue, Aubin asserts that the Third District erred in determining that Union Carbide was entitled to a new trial based on a jury instruction pertaining to its duty to warn the end user and the failure to instruct on the learned intermediary defense. In analyzing this issue, we first review the learned intermediary defense and determine that Union Carbide could present this defense to the jury. We then consider whether the trial court erred in failing to give the proposed instruction on the learned intermediary defense and determine that the trial court did not err because the requested jury instruction pertaining to this defense was misleading. We conclude that granting a new trial on this issue was error. A. Union Carbide’s Duty to Warn and the Learned Intermediary Doctrine Both Aubin and Union Carbide requested special instructions based on the fact that Union Carbide supplied its asbestos product to intermediary - 45 - manufacturers, which used the asbestos to produce the final products, such as joint compounds, purchased by the end users. The parties disagreed, however, on the state of the law regarding the duty to warn end users, and each submitted proposed jury instructions pertaining to the duty to warn. Aubin requested the trial court to include a general instruction that Union Carbide had the duty to warn the end user, while Union Carbide asserted that it was entitled to an instruction pertaining to the learned intermediary defense and whether Union Carbide had fulfilled its duty to warn by warning the intermediaries as to the dangers. As correctly stated in Kavanaugh, Union Carbide “as a bulk supplier of asbestos, had a duty to warn of the danger of its product.” Kavanaugh, 879 So. 2d at 44. “Under the Second Restatement, [Union Carbide] is liable if it knowingly placed a dangerous product on the market, the dangerous condition of which is unnoticeable, and failed to properly warn of the dangerous condition.” Id. The manufacturer may be able to rely on an intermediary to relay the warnings to the end user but the intermediary must be “learned”; that is, “one who has knowledge of the danger and whose position vis-a-vis the manufacturer and consumer, confers a duty to convey the requisite warnings to the consumer.” Kavanaugh, 879 So. 2d at 44 (quoting Brito v. Cty. of Palm Beach, 753 So. 2d 109, 111 n.1 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)). However, as the Third District has recognized, the “learned intermediary doctrine” is not a complete defense and explained that the “intermediary’s level of - 46 - education, knowledge, expertise, and relationship with the end-users is informative, but not dispositive, on the issue of whether it was reasonable for the manufacturer to rely on that intermediary to relay the warning to end users.” Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 900. The Second and Third Restatements both recognize that a manufacturer may be able to rely on an intermediary to relay warnings to the end user, but the critical inquiry is whether the manufacturer was reasonable in relying on the intermediary to fully warn the end user and whether the manufacturer fully warned the intermediary of the dangers in its product. The Second Restatement sets forth a list of non-exclusive factors: “Here, as in every case which involves the determination of the precautions which must be taken to satisfy the requirements of reasonable care, the magnitude of the risk involved must be compared with the burden which would be imposed by requiring them (see § 291), and the magnitude of the risk is determined not only by the chance that some harm may result but also the serious or trivial character of the harm which is likely to result.” Restatement (Second) of Torts § 388 cmt. n (1965). The Third Restatement likewise states, “The standard is one of reasonableness in the circumstances. Among the factors to be considered are the gravity of the risks posed by the product, the likelihood that the intermediary will convey the information to the ultimate user, and the feasibility - 47 - and effectiveness of giving a warning directly to the user.” See Restatement (Third) of Torts: Prod. Liab. § 2, cmt. i (1998). Further, in certain instances, warnings from a supplier to a manufacturer alone are insufficient, as explained in the Second Restatement: If, however, the third person is known to be careless or inconsiderate or if the purpose for which the chattel is to be used is to his advantage and knowledge of the true character of the chattel is likely to prevent its being used and so to deprive him of this advantage—as when goods so defective as to be unsalable are sold by a wholesaler to a retailer—the supplier of the chattel has reason to expect, or at least suspect, that the information will fail to reach those who are to use the chattel and whose safety depends upon their knowledge of its true character. In such a case, the supplier may well be required to go further than to tell such a third person of the dangerous character of the article, or, if he fails to do so, to take the risk of being subjected to liability if the information is not brought home to those whom the supplier should expect to use the chattel. Even though the supplier has no practicable opportunity to give this information directly and in person to those who are to use the chattel or share in its use, it is not unreasonable to require him to make good any harm which is caused by his using so unreliable a method of giving the information which is obviously necessary to make the chattel safe for those who use it and those in the vicinity of its use. Restatement (Second) of Torts § 388 cmt. l (1965). Thus, a manufacturer may not be able to reasonably rely on an intermediary to provide warnings if the manufacturer knows that the necessary warnings would render the product less valuable and provide an incentive to the intermediary to withhold the necessary information from the consumer. Likewise, if the manufacturer, such as Union Carbide, did not adequately convey the danger to the - 48 - intermediary or take steps to ensure that the intermediary would adequately warn the end user, a manufacturer may not be reasonable in relying on an intermediary to pass along such a crucial warning to the end user. The reasonableness of a manufacturer’s reliance on an intermediary to convey the warnings to the end user is also impacted by the dangerousness of the product. In general, the greater the harm that the end user would be subjected to if proper warnings are not given, the less reasonable a manufacturer will be in relying on an intermediary to ensure that the warnings are fully and adequately communicated to the end user. See Restatement (Second) of Torts § 388 cmt. l (1965) (“[I]f the danger involved in the ignorant use of a particular chattel is very great, it may be that the supplier does not exercise reasonable care in entrusting the communication of the necessary information to even a person whom he has good reason to believe to be careful.”). In this case, the Third District concluded that under both the Second and Third Restatements, “the determination as to whether a bulk supplier may rely on an intermediary to warn end users is a question reserved for the trier of fact.” Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 900. However, the Third District held that the trial court did not adequately inform the jury about the learned intermediary defense and further observed that the trial court may have relied on the decision in McConnell, which incorrectly concluded that the learned intermediary defense “is not applicable to - 49 - Calidria Asbestos and Ready-Mix with its hidden measure of asbestos.” Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 904 n.6 (quoting McConnell, 937 So. 2d at 156). The Third District explained the error in McConnell, which was based upon a flawed reading of the decision in Kavanaugh: The Kavanaugh court concluded that it was for the jury to weigh whether the warnings provided to the manufacturer who integrated Union Carbide’s product were adequate and whether Union Carbide discharged its duty to end users. It also appears that the McConnell court may have transformed the affirmation of the jury’s determination in Kavanaugh into a legal holding to be applied in all future cases involving Calidria asbestos. Because such a holding would effectively preclude Union Carbide from litigating against future plaintiffs as to whether its reliance on intermediaries was reasonable, it comes perilously close to application of non-mutual, offensive collateral estoppel, which is impermissible in Florida. Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 904. We agree that in McConnell, the Fourth District erroneously went farther than Kavanaugh and failed to recognize that determining whether the duty to warn the end user can be discharged by warning the intermediary was a jury question. We therefore agree with the Third District that the learned intermediary defense is a doctrine that a manufacturer can use to argue to the jury that its duty to warn was fulfilled, provided that the evidence supports that defense and the jury instruction accurately explains the factors for the jury to consider in determining whether the manufacturer’s reliance was reasonable. We disapprove of McConnell to the extent that it is inconsistent with our opinion here. - 50 - The Third District further concluded that because of the erroneous reliance on McConnell, the jury was not fully instructed on the learned intermediary defense and thus Union Carbide was entitled to a new trial in order to present its defense. Accordingly, we analyze whether the jury instructions given in this case amount to reversible error and thus mandate a new trial. B. Whether the Trial Court Erred in Instructing the Jury in this Case Generally, the applicable standard jury instructions are presumed correct and should be given unless such instructions are erroneous or inadequate. See, e.g., Moss v. Kountry Kitchen of Key Largo, Inc., 952 So. 2d 558, 559 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007); McConnell, 937 So. 2d at 153; Freeman v. State, 761 So. 2d 1055, 1071 (Fla. 2000) (“The standard jury instructions are presumed to be correct.”). In this case, however, standard jury instructions did not exist pertaining to the failure to warn, so the parties proposed their own specific instructions.8 8. At the time of the trial, there were no standard instructions on failure to warn, and the instruction now approved for use by this Court does not address the issue of products distributed through intermediaries: 403.8 STRICT LIABILITY FAILURE TO WARN A product is defective when the foreseeable risks of harm from the product could have been reduced or avoided by providing reasonable instructions or warnings, and the failure to provide those instructions or warnings makes the product unreasonably dangerous. NOTES ON USE FOR 403.8 - 51 - A party is entitled to have the jury instructed on the theory of its case when the evidence supports that theory. See OB/GYN Specialists of Palm Beaches, P.A. v. Mejia, 134 So. 3d 1084, 1091 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014); Barkett v. Gomez, 908 So. 2d 1084, 1086 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005). To demonstrate that the trial court erred in failing to give a requested jury instruction, a party must show “the requested instruction contained an accurate statement of the law, the facts in the case supported a giving of the instruction, and the instruction was necessary for the jury to properly resolve the issues in the case.” Barkett, 908 So. 2d at 1086; see also Force, 879 So. 2d at 106; Smith v. Hugo, 714 So. 2d 467, 468 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). 1. The following cases recognize strict liability for a failure to warn of defects. Union Carbide Corp. v. Aubin, 97 So. 3d 886, 898 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012); McConnell v. Union Carbide Corp., 937 So. 2d 148, 151-52 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006); Union Carbide Corp. v. Kavanaugh, 879 So. 2d 42, 45 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004); SchemanGonzalez v. Saber Manufacturing Co., 816 So. 2d 1133 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002); Ferayorni v. Hyundai Motor Co., 711 So. 2d 1167 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). 2. When strict liability and negligent failure to warn claims are tried together, to clarify differences between them it may be necessary to add language to the strict liability instruction to the effect that a product is defective if unreasonably dangerous even though the seller has exercised all possible care in the preparation and sale of the product. Restatement (Second) Torts, § 402A(2)(a). In re Std. Jury Instr. in Civ. Cases—Report No. 13-01, 160 So. 3d at 875. - 52 - In determining whether an erroneous jury instruction amounts to reversible error, the appellate court must assess whether the instruction reasonably might have misled the jury. See McPhee v. Paul Revere Life Ins. Co., 883 So. 2d 364, 368 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004) (“[T]he test for reversible error arising from an erroneous jury instruction is not whether the instruction misled, but only whether it reasonably might have misled the jury.”); Jacobs v. Westgate, 766 So. 2d 1175, 1180 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000) (“Reversal is required where a jury might reasonably have been misled, regardless of whether it has actually been misled.”). To properly preserve this error, there must be a timely, specific objection to the jury instruction. See Feliciano v. Sch. Bd. of Palm Beach Cty., 776 So. 2d 306, 308 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000); City of Orlando v. Birmingham, 539 So. 2d 1133, 1134-35 (Fla. 1989). In this case, Aubin and Union Carbide each requested a special jury instruction based on the fact that Union Carbide supplied its asbestos product to separate third-party intermediaries that produced the final products sold to the end users, such as joint compounds. Aubin requested the trial court to include an instruction that Union Carbide had the duty to warn the end user, relying on McConnell from the Fourth District. This special jury instruction stated: “An asbestos manufacturer, such as Union Carbide Corporation, has a duty to warn end users of an unreasonable danger in the contemplated use of its products.” - 53 - Union Carbide objected to this instruction because it did not recognize the learned intermediary defense or provide the jury with the factors that the jury should consider in determining whether Union Carbide fulfilled its duty to warn. Union Carbide tendered its own instructions regarding the factors that the jury could consider when applying the learned intermediary defense: In considering what constitutes reasonable care in connection with William Aubin’s failure to warn claim, your consideration may include, but is not limited to, the following factors:  the warnings Union Carbide provided to its customers who used Union Carbide’s asbestos in making joint compound or ceiling sprays,  whether Union Carbide asbestos customers were aware of the dangers involving asbestos,  whether Union Carbide had access to joint compound and ceiling spray end customers, and  whether Union Carbide had the ability to require customers to give specific warnings to users of the products incorporating Union Carbide’s asbestos. After considering both parties’ proposed instructions, the trial court determined that Aubin’s proposed instruction on the duty to warn should be given and rejected Union Carbide’s proposed instructions. The jury ultimately attributed 46.25% of the fault to Union Carbide and apportioned the remaining 53.75% to several intermediaries listed on the verdict form. The Third District, however, held that while Aubin’s requested special instruction on the duty to warn that the trial court gave was “technically accurate,” it was misleading standing alone because it - 54 - failed to inform the jury that a manufacturer could discharge its duty to warn by reasonably relying on a learned intermediary. Aubin, 97 So. 3d at 902. After examining the record and comparing the cases in support of the proposed jury instructions with the proposed instructions themselves, we reject Union Carbide’s argument that the trial court committed reversible error in failing to instruct on this theory. The special jury instructions requested by Union Carbide did not provide an accurate statement of the law as to this defense. In order to show that the trial court erred in failing to give its requested jury instruction, Union Carbide must show “the requested instruction contained an accurate statement of the law, the facts in the case supported a giving of the instruction, and the instruction was necessary for the jury to properly resolve the issues in the case.” Barkett, 908 So. 2d at 1086. This Union Carbide has not done. In fact, some of the factors that Union Carbide proposed are directly contrary to principles of law established in other asbestos litigation and in the cases that the proposed jury instructions relied upon. For example, one of the factors proposed by Union Carbide was whether the intermediaries were aware that asbestos is dangerous. However, as the Fourth District correctly recognized in McConnell, 937 So. 2d at 154, a jury would be reasonably misled by such a jury instruction that strongly implies that a learned intermediary’s specific knowledge about a defect, rather than the end user’s - 55 - knowledge, is the focus of Florida’s strict liability law. Likewise, the factor that the jury should consider whether Union Carbide had access to the learned intermediary’s customers is misleading, as neither the caselaw nor the Second Restatement have recognized that manufacturers must have direct access to the end user. See id. at 156 (recognizing that a manufacturer can require a learned intermediary to adopt a particular means of disclosure to ensure the end user will be adequately warned); Restatement (Second) of Torts § 388 cmt. l (1965) (recognizing that where the manufacturer has reason to suspect that the learned intermediary will not pass necessary warnings to the end user, the manufacturer “takes[s] the risk of being subjected to liability if the information is not brought home to those whom the [manufacturer] should expect to use the chattel”). As we have explained, both the Second and Third Restatements provide that the learned intermediary defense permits a manufacturer to rely on an intermediary to relay warnings to the end user, provided that reliance is reasonable, based on the following nonexclusive factors: the gravity of the risks posed by the product, the likelihood that the intermediary will convey the information to the ultimate end user, and the feasibility and effectiveness of directly warning the end user. Union Carbide’s proposed instructions did not clearly address these factors and in fact were misleading in this regard. - 56 - “When non-standard instructions are proposed, trial courts face an analytical task similar in kind to that performed by the thirty-two member Florida Standard Jury Instructions Committee—without the luxury of time.” R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. v. Jewett, 106 So. 3d 465, 469 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012). Thus, non-standard proposed instructions must be legally accurate and factually relevant. Id. A party cannot complain on appeal that a trial court committed reversible error by failing to correct that party’s own inaccurate and misleading proposed instructions. In fact, permitting parties to raise such issues on appeal would invite parties to deliberately propose inaccurate instructions so that such a party could either complain that the trial court committed reversible error in failing to correct the error or that the trial court erred in how it corrected the inaccurate instructions. Since Union Carbide’s proposed jury instructions did not contain an accurate statement of the law, the trial court did not err in failing to give these instructions. After reviewing the jury instructions as a whole, we conclude that the instructions given by the trial court were not misleading. Although special jury instructions could be fashioned to explain the learned intermediary defense, the absence of these instructions did not render the jury instructions as a whole erroneous. This is especially so because the special instructions requested by - 57 - Union Carbide were in themselves misleading and not an accurate statement of the learned intermediary defense. Given the instructions that the jury was provided, the actual findings of the jury that apportioned fault to several of the intermediaries, and the arguments of counsel, as well as the failure of Union Carbide to provide accurate jury instructions on the learned intermediary defense, we conclude that no reversible error occurred. Accordingly, while we disapprove McConnell to the extent it could be read as determining as a matter of law that the duty to warn end users can never be satisfied by reasonably relying on a warning to a learned intermediary, we nevertheless conclude that there is no basis for finding reversible error in this case.