Ford v. Polaris Industries, Inc.
California Court of Appeal
43 Cal. Rptr. 3d 215 (2006)
Susan Ford (plaintiff) was riding as a passenger on a jet ski driven by Laura Nakamura (defendant) when Susan was bumped off the jet ski and fell into the water directly behind the jet nozzle, whose high-pressure water stream caused severe internal injuries requiring multiple surgeries. Susan and her husband sued jet-ski manufacturer Polaris (defendant) for strict products liability and sued Laura for negligence; the trial court granted Laura summary judgment on primary-assumption-of-risk grounds but denied Polaris's parallel summary judgment motion, reasoning Polaris (unlike Laura) owed Susan a duty to provide a defect-free product, and the jury awarded the Fords nearly $3.75 million against Polaris, which appealed.
Whether the doctrine of primary assumption of risk insulates equipment suppliers from liability for injury caused by providing defective equipment.