Malcolm v. Evenflo Co.
Montana Supreme Court
217 P.3d 514 (2009)
After receiving assurance from Evenflo Company (defendant) that its 'On My Way' child safety seat wasn't subject to any recalls, Jessica Malcolm (plaintiff) used it for her son Tyler; during a rollover accident, the seat's left belt hook broke and ejected the seat, and although Tyler remained strapped in, he suffered fatal brain injuries. The Malcolms sued Evenflo for strict products liability, arguing the seat's open-ended belt hook design and lack of protective padding were defects with a feasible safer alternative available, while Evenflo argued the seat wasn't defective and had passed all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standard (FMVSS) tests. The trial court excluded Evenflo's FMVSS-compliance evidence as irrelevant to the design-defect claim, the jury awarded the Malcolms over $6.5 million, and Evenflo appealed.
Whether a manufacturer is liable under a strict products liability claim of defective design under the consumer expectations test if its product fails to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect.