Phillips v. Century LLC
California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 6
2017 WL 773545 (2017)
Robert Phillips (co-plaintiff) suffered a facial cut from martial-arts headgear made by Century LLC (defendant) during sparring, followed the next day by a chiropractic neck adjustment and then a stroke from a carotid artery dissection causing severe brain damage; Phillips and his wife (co-plaintiffs) sued Century for negligent design and failure to warn. At trial, a Century executive testified that of roughly 105,000 units of that headgear model sold, Phillips's was the only injury claim ever made, based on the executive's thorough review of every insurance claim and company file; the jury found Century negligent in the design but that the negligence was not a substantial factor causing Phillips's injury, and the Phillipses appealed the admission of the no-similar-claims evidence.
Whether, in a products-liability action, courts may admit evidence of a lack of similar claims when offered by a witness familiar with the product's safety records or claims history.