Robin B. Quinn, Prsnl. Rep. for Jo Ann Allen v. General Electric Co.

Summary

The Supreme Court of Maryland answered a certified question that, in an asbestos-related strict-liability design-defect action, a household member exposed to asbestos dust carried home on a consumer's or user's work clothing need not prove a separate duty element. The claimant must instead prove the four elements adopted for strict-liability design-defect claims: defect when the product left the seller, unreasonable danger, causation, and expected receipt without substantial change. The Court distinguished strict-liability failure-to-warn claims, which require proof of duty, and declined to decide whether additional requirements apply to nonusers or nonconsumers in other contexts.