Court Opinion

ID: 9715228
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 05:58:03.316813+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:23:32.739722
License: Public Domain

MR. JUSTICE RYAN, also dissenting: This is another products liability case involving farm equipment designed for the application of fertilizer in which I cannot agree with the opinion of my colleagues. (See Thomas v. Kaiser Agricultural Chemicals (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 206, 218 (Ryan, J., dissenting).) My dissent here, as in Thomas, is based upon the failure to abide by, and a complete disobedience of, a clear warning plainly printed on the vehicle. There is no contention here, as there was in Schuh v. Fox River Tractor Co. (1974), 63 Wis. 2d 728, 218 N.W.2d 279, where a similar warning was involved, that the label had not been seen or that it was located in such a position that it was not visible. I also want to initially note that the opinion of Dr. Norval Wardle that this spreader was unreasonably dangerous is based on the dangers to one who is in the hopper of the spreader to break up lumps of fertilizer. The record does not establish that the plaintiff was in the spreader for that purpose, or that it was intended that this machine be used in that manner. It is interesting to note that Dr. Wardle also testified for the plaintiff in the Wisconsin case above cited. The opinion seems to focus on evidence which would constitute this piece of machinery unreasonably dangerous because of the way it was constructed, and because Dr. Wardle testified that the spreader could have been made with some type of protective grids or grillwork at a cost of approximately $50. This evidence, as I see it, is relevant only insofar as it indicates a foreseeable danger from other than the normal use of the spreader. Likewise, the testimony that people, including children, customarily rode in the fertilizer spreader is relevant only insofar as it relates to the individuals to whom injury may be reasonably foreseen and a use of the spreader that may be reasonably foreseen. This machine was not dangerous if used in the manner and for the purpose for which it was designed. It was designed for a one-man operation. It was not powered by a power takeoff, but was designed so that when it was not moving, the rotating agitator in the bottom of the hopper, which Dr. Wardle viewed as dangerous, was not in operation. If the person operating the machine had to stop to break up lumps of fertilizer in the hopper, he was in no danger, because the agitator would not be in motion. Thus, the testimony of the experts to the effect that this machine was unreasonably dangerous relates only to its condition if not used in the manner intended. However, it was reasonably foreseeable that it would not be used as intended and that an injury might result from such an intended use. This then brings this case within the purview of Restatement (Second) of Torts section 402A, comment h, at 351-52 (1965), which states that a product, not defective when safe for normal use, may be defective in the absence of a warning if the manufacturer has reason to anticipate that injury may result from the particular use which is reasonably foreseeable. A product sold under these conditions without an adequate warning of the danger is in a defective condition. Likewise, although not relevant here, if there is a known or foreseeable danger when the product is used in its normal or intended use, there is a duty to adequately warn. See Annot., 53 A.L.R.3d 239, 249, 251, 255 (1973); Jonescue v. Jewel Home Shopping Service (1974), 16 Ill. App. 3d 339, 344; Genaust v. Illinois Power Co. (1974) , 23 Ill. App. 3d 1023, 1031, aff’d (1976), 62 Ill. 2d 456; Greiner v. Volkswagenwerk Aktiengeselleschaft (3d Cir. 1976), 540 F.2d 85. The law does not require that a product be accident proof, incapable of causing harm, or accompanied by a warning against every injury that may be incurred in the use of the product. The purpose of a warning is to apprise a party of a danger and to enable him to protect himself against it. (Jonescue v. Jewel Home Shopping Service (1974), 16 Ill. App. 3d 339, 345.) In our case, assuming, as we must, that a warning was required, the controlling question concerns the adequacy of the warning, that is, was it sufficient to apprise the parties of a danger and to enable them to protect themselves against it. If a warning is adequate, then, as noted in Restatement (Second) of Torts section 402A, comment j, at 353 (1965), the product is not in a defective condition, nor is it unreasonably dangerous: “Where warning is given, the seller may reasonably assume that it will be read and heeded; and a product bearing such a warning, which is safe for use if it is followed, is not in defective condition, nor is it unreasonably dangerous.” It is hard to believe that any farmer experienced in the use of fertilizer spreaders, as Miller was, would not be well aware of the dangers inherent in putting or permitting an 11-year-old child to be in the hopper of a fertilizer spreader, the sides of which sloped inward, with a rotating agitator and auger in the bottom of the V-shaped bin. But even indulging in this absurd assumption, the warning plainly warned of the danger present. It is not contended that either Miller or the plaintiff did not see the warning on the vehicle or understand the dangers against which it was designed to protect. It is not necessary, as the majority opinion seems to hold, that the precise nature of the dangers be specified. There are any number of different types of injuries that could happen if a person were to ride in the fertilizer spreader. The hopper was 74 inches high. A child riding on a full load of fertilizer could possibly be drawn down into the fertilizer as it was being augered out, and suffocate, an arm or leg could become caught in the moving machinery in the hopper, or one could suffer serious injury by falling on the slippery, sloping sides of the hopper. Certainly, a laundry list of dangers that may be encountered riding in or on the hopper need not be posted. Such a warning would be so detailed as to be meaningless. The warning required must be sufficient to place a user on guard against the harmful consequences that might result from the use of the product. (Tampa Drug Co. v. Wait (Fla. 1958), 103 So. 2d 603.) Implicit in the duty to warn is the duty to warn with a degree of intensity that would cause a reasonable man to exercise, for his own safety, caution commensurate with the potential danger. (See Annot., 76 A.L.R.2d 9, 37 (1961).) I would hold as a matter of law that the warning “Keep off implement unless seat or platform is provided. Keep others off,” which was attached to the fertilizer spreader, plainly meets these standards of adequacy. If these warnings would have been heeded by Miller or the plaintiff, the injury could not have happened. In my dissent in Thomas v. Kaiser Agricultural Chemicals (1980), 81 Ill. 2d 206, 219, I referred to the New York case of Walk v. J.I. Case Co. (1971), 36 App. Div. 2d 60, 318 N.Y.S.2d 598, in which recovery was barred as a matter of law where the operator of a corn-picking machine was injured while removing husks from the snapping rollers, contrary to instructions printed on a warning plate on the machine cautioning against cleaning the machine while in operation. One cannot violate simple, clear and plainly worded warnings and then recover from the manufacturer for injuries sustained from what must be considered to be an intentional or knowing violation of a warning which, if heeded, would have prevented the injury. (See Restatement (Second) of Torts sec. 402A, comment n, at 356 (1965).) This is not a contributory negligence rationale. Under the authorities cited above, if the warning is adequate, the machine “is not in defective condition, nor is it unreasonably dangerous.” (Restatement (Second) of Torts sec. 402A, comment j, at 353 (1965).) Also, the violation of a plain and adequate warning which, if heeded, would have prevented the injury constitutes an assumption of the risk. Restatement (Second) of of Torts sec. 402A, comment n, at 356 (1965); Williams v. Brown Manufacturing Co. (1970), 45 Ill. 2d 418. The majority opinion cites the Wisconsin case of Schuh v. Fox River Tractor Co. (1974), 63 Wis. 2d 728, 218 N.W.2d 279, which I have referred to above. In that case the warning given was identical to that part of the warning in our case which I have quoted. However, in the Wisconsin case the location of the warning was such that it was not easily visible and plaintiff testified he had not seen the warning on the machine. Also, in that case there was a lever on the crop blower which the plaintiff thought controlled both the auger in the blower and the blower fan. In fact, the lever only controlled the auger, and the fan remained in operation even though the lever was moved to neutral. In order to make some repairs, plaintiff threw the lever and stood on the edge of the hopper of the crop blower. When he did so, he slipped and was injured by the blower fan, which was still in operation. The court, noting that plaintiff had testified he believed he had shut off the fan when he pulled the lever, held that under the facts of that case the adequacy of the warning was a question of fact for the jury. We have no contention of any misunderstanding or ambiguity, or that the warning had not been seen in our case. I would hold, as a matter of law, that the warning was adequate to inform Miller and the plaintiff of the danger so that they could protect themselves against it, and that the plaintiff is barred from recovery as a matter of law. I also disagree with the handling of the loan agreement by the majority opinion. I will not needlessly lengthen this dissent by detailing my disagreement. Basically, I find offensive the use of a loan agreement in such a manner as to limit Miller’s liability in this case. He was grossly negligent. I can find no reason within the realm of sanity that would justify an experienced farmer placing an 11-year-old child in such a dangerous position in violation of a clear warning not to do so. I view this case as a fulfillment of the prophesy of Mr. Justice Schaefer in the dissent in Reese v. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy R.R. Co. (1973), 55 Ill. 2d 356, in which it was stated that the use of the loan agreement tends to throw the entire loss upon the less blameworthy party because the more blameworthy party will be willing to offer more in the pretrial auction for the opportunity to enter into a loan agreement and thus hopefully to escape liability altogether. Reese v. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy R.R. Co. (1973), 55 Ill. 2d 356, 365 (Schaefer, J., dissenting). For the reasons stated above, I would hold that the plaintiff is not entitled to recover.