Cavalier v. Werner Co.

• Decision Date: 21 August 1997
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 96-40215.
• Citation: 976 F.Supp. 672
• Parties: Salvatore CAVALIER and Laura Cavalier, Plaintiff, v. WERNER COMPANY, a Pennsylvania corporation, and Home Depot, U.S.A., Inc., a Delaware corporation, jointly and severally, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Michigan

976 F.Supp. 672

Salvatore CAVALIER and Laura Cavalier, Plaintiff, v. WERNER COMPANY, a Pennsylvania corporation, and Home Depot, U.S.A., Inc., a Delaware corporation, jointly and severally, Defendants.

Civil Action No. 96-40215.

United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division.

August 21, 1997.

Barry S. Fagan, Dib & Fagan, Detroit, MI, for Plaintiff.

James R. Kohl, Plunkett & Cooney, Detroit, MI, for Defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

GADOLA, District Judge.

On March 25, 1996, plaintiffs Salvatore and Laura Cavalier filed this product liability action in Macomb County Circuit Court against Werner Company ("Werner") and Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. ("Home Depot"). On June 11, 1996, the case was removed to this court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332, 1441.

Presently before this court is defendants' motion for summary judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56. For the following reasons, defendants' motion for summary judgment will be granted.¹

FACTS

In September of 1994, Salvatore Cavalier ("Salvatore") purchased a six-foot aluminum step ladder from Home Depot. The ladder was manufactured and designed by Werner under the manufacturing name of "All American Ladder." (S. Cavalier Dep. at 24). This particular ladder is a model A306 and is a Type III ladder, which means that it is a light duty, household grade ladder. The ladder's weight rating is 200 pounds. Salvatore weighs approximately 183 pounds.

On October 17, 1994, Salvatore was working on renovations in a building owned by his father at 12500 Thirteen Mile Road in Warren, Michigan. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 16-18). In particular, on this day, Salvatore was stringing up fluorescent lights and was rescrewing light fixtures, and was utilizing the model A306 ladder which he purchased from Home Depot approximately one month earlier.² (S. Cavalier Dep. at 18-19).

The room in which Salvatore was working had a concrete floor and ceilings that were approximately nine feet high. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 19-20). Before using the ladder, Salvatore set the ladder on a level, plane surface with the hinges locked. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 37). He then climbed the ladder to the third or fourth rung from the floor and began working on the task of tacking up a light fixture. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 39).

After standing on the ladder for approximately five minutes, during which time he was working with his hands over his head and looking at the ceiling tiles, Salvatore allegedly fell off of the ladder to his left, twisted 180 degrees in the air and landed in a seated position on the floor to the right side of the ladder. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 48). The ladder also allegedly fell and struck him on the right shoulder. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 39-48).

Prior to his alleged sudden descent from the ladder, it was "good," "steady," and "firm" underneath him. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 40). Indeed, Salvatore testified that he felt no sensation of movement whatsoever and did not hear anything prior to his alleged tumble. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 40). There were no witnesses to this alleged accident, although John Lia, a friend of Salvatore's, was in the building at the time. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 18; Lia Dep. at 7).

After his alleged fall from the ladder, Salvatore was driven to Macomb Hospital Center, formerly known as South Macomb, by his friend Lia (S. Cavalier Dep. at 63; Lia Dep. at 27). Salvatore underwent surgical implantation of two titanium plates to repair a comminuted fracture of his left forearm. (Admission Registration Record of Detroit-Macomb Hospital Corp., Exh. H to Plaintiffs' Response to Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment). Salvatore claims that as a result of the accident, he cannot play ice hockey, and he cannot engage in simple construction activities necessary for the successful continuation of his career, like shoveling and hammering. (S. Cavalier Dep. at 71-74).

On March 25, 1996, Salvatore and his wife initiated this lawsuit against Werner, the manufacturer of the subject ladder, and Home Depot, U.S.A., the seller of the ladder. The complaint alleges four counts: manufacturing and/or design defect (Count I), breach of express and implied warranty (Count II), breach of strict liability in tort (Count III), and loss of consortium (Count IV).

On September 16, 1996, Count III of plaintiffs' complaint, a claim of strict liability in tort, was dismissed on the grounds that no such cause of action exists under Michigan law, which governs this case. Currently before this court is defendants' motion for summary judgement on the remaining three counts, namely Counts I, II and IV. For the reasons stated below, this court will grant defendants' motion and dismiss this case.

ANALYSIS

Summary Judgment

Under Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, summary judgment "shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." "A fact is `material' and precludes grant of summary judgment if proof of that fact would have [the] effect of establishing or refuting one of the essential elements of the cause of action or defense asserted by the parties, and would necessarily affect [the] application of appropriate principle[s] of law to the rights and obligations of the parties." Kendall v. Hoover Co., 751 F.2d 171, 174 (6th Cir.1984) (citation omitted). The court must view the evidence in a light most favorable to the nonmovant as well as draw all reasonable inferences in the nonmovant's favor. See United States v. Diebold, Inc., 369 U.S. 654, 655, 82 S.Ct. 993, 994, 8 L.Ed.2d 176 (1962); Bender v. Southland Corp., 749 F.2d 1205, 1210-11 (6th Cir.1984).

The movant bears the burden of demonstrating the absence of all genuine issues of material fact. See Gregg v. Allen-Bradley Co., 801 F.2d 859, 861 (6th Cir.1986). This burden "may be discharged by `showing' — that is, pointing out to the district court — that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party's case." Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2553-54, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Once the moving party discharges that burden, the burden shifts to the nonmoving party to set forth specific facts showing a genuine triable issue. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Gregg, 801 F.2d at 861.

To create a genuine issue of material fact, the nonmovant must do more than present some evidence on a disputed issue. As the United States Supreme Court stated in Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986),

There is no issue for trial unless there is sufficient evidence favoring the nonmoving party for a jury to return a verdict for that party. If the [nonmovant's] evidence is merely colorable, or is not significantly probative, summary judgment may be granted.

(Citations omitted). See Catrett, 477 U.S. at 322-23, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53; Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586-87, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1355-56, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986) The evidence itself need not be the sort admissible at trial. Ashbrook v. Block, 917 F.2d 918, 921 (6th Cir.1990). However, the evidence must be more than the nonmovant's own pleadings and affidavits. Id.

Count I — Design and Manufacturing Defect

Count I, which is brought by Salvatore Cavalier, alleges, inter alia, that defendants were negligent in failing to properly design and/or manufacture the ladder in question, and in distributing, marketing, and/or selling the ladder that was unreasonably safe due to a design and/or manufacturing defect. The manufacturing defect complained of is a "notch" in the spreader bars of the ladder,³ while the design defect asserted is insufficient torsional rigidity, or, in other words, inadequate stiffness.⁴

In order to succeed on his manufacturing and design defect claims, Salvatore must establish a causal connection between the alleged defects and the injury he sustained. Skinner v. Square D. Co., 445 Mich. 153, 165, 516 N.W.2d 475, reh'g. denied, 445 Mich. 1233, 521 N.W.2d 15 (1994); Snider v. Bob Thibodeau Ford, Inc., 42 Mich.App. 708, 713, 202 N.W.2d 727 (1972).⁵ Plaintiff meets this burden by introducing evidence that affords a reasonable basis for the conclusion that it is more likely than not that the alleged defects were the cause of the harm done. Stated another way, Salvatore must show that his causation hypothesis has some basis in established fact and is more probable than any other hypothesis reflected by the evidence. Id. "The mere possibility that [the] [defects] may have been the cause, either theoretical or conjectural, of an accident is not sufficient to establish a causal link between the two." Id. (emphasis added) (citing Jordan v. Whiting Corp., 396 Mich. 145, 240 N.W.2d 468 (1976)). As explained by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals:

Where the evidence indicates that it is as likely that the incident was caused by factors other than those asserted, a verdict for the defendant is mandated since otherwise a verdict would be based on speculation and conjecture.

American & Foreign Ins. Co. v. General Electric Co., 45 F.3d 135, 140 (6th Cir.1995). The plaintiff, however, is not required to eliminate all possible causes of the accident. Holloway v. General Motors Corp., 403 Mich. 614, 621, 271 N.W.2d 777 (1978) (on rehearing) Compare Baker v. Sears, Roebuck and Co., No. 93-1084, 43 F.3d 1471, 1994 WL 702235 (6th Cir. Oct.20, 1994) (plaintiff could not remember and there were no witnesses to plaintiff's alleged fall down a flight of stairs in a department store; plaintiff attempted to use expert testimony that a design defect in the stairway caused plaintiff's fall; court affirmed district court's grant of summary judgment to defendant finding that the reliance upon the expert's...