awarding plaintiff of 42- years of age, who was permanently paralyzed from the chest down after sustaining injuries in an automobile collision in which the back of her seat collapsed, causing her to “submarine” beneath her seatbelt and strike the rear seat back, compensatory damages in the amount of $10 million
How later courts described this case
- awarding plaintiff of 42- years of age, who was permanently paralyzed from the chest down after sustaining injuries in an automobile collision in which the back of her seat collapsed, causing her to “submarine” beneath her seatbelt and strike the rear seat back, compensatory damages in the amount of $10 million
- observing that “the intervening cause doctrine is inapplicable where the alleged intervening, superseding cause is the plaintiffs own negligent conduct”
- agreeing that harm in the abstract could have been foreseen
- “Where the record contains material evidence supporting the verdict, the judgment based on that verdict will not be disturbed on appeal.”
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
HERSCHEL PICKENS FRANKS, P.J.,
concurring.
While I agree with Ford, that Restatement (Third) of Torts § 2, comment f, requires: “To establish a prima facie case of defect, the plaintiff must prove the availability of a technologically feasible and practical alternative design that would have reduced or prevented the plaintiffs harm ... ”, unless and until Tennessee adopts Restatement (Third) of Torts on this issue, Judge Lee in my view, has correctly summarized the state of Tennessee law on this issue. Accordingly, I concur in her Opinion in affirming the Trial Court.