In re Zurn Pex Plumbing Products Liability Litigation

Zurn Pex, Inc. (Zurn) (defendant) designed plumbing systems using brass fittings prone to corrosion and premature failure. Denise and Terry Cox (plaintiffs), whose home was damaged by a leaking Zurn pex system, sued for violations of Minnesota consumer-protection law, negligence, and breach of warranty; related lawsuits nationwide were consolidated before this court, and the plaintiffs sought class certification. Their expert witnesses included Dr. Blischke, who analyzed warranty-claims data, and Dr. Staehle, who tested the brass fittings; Zurn challenged both experts' testimony as unreliable.