Lightfoot Secures Defense Verdict in Products Liability Suit Seeking $7.3M Over Conveyor Belt Injury
August 26, 2024
Lightfoot Franklin & White LLC obtained a defense verdict for its client, Teal Sales Inc. (TSI), following a week-long federal trial in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama in Mobile. The products liability lawsuit sought $7.3 million in damages. The trial team, comprised of partners Adam K. Peck, Sanford G. Hooper and associate W. McKinley Dunn, represented TSI, a Washington state-based family business that designs and sells machinery for the wood processing industry.
The suit originated after the plaintiff sustained a catastrophic upper extremity injury while working at an Alabama mill in 2021. The plaintiff alleged that TSI’s trim waste conveyor belt was negligently designed, caused his accident, and that there should have been a barrier guard on the nonmotorized end of the belt.
With guidance from Lightfoot attorneys and exhibits designed by Lightfoot’s director of litigation technology Sam McAllister, TSI defended the design of its belt. The trial team asserted the conveyor belt, as designed, met both Industry Safety Standards and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Regulations and was well-protected from unintentional contact due to its location and position. The defense team also argued that the plaintiff’s own negligence contributed to his injuries, thus barring his claim for damages under Alabama law.
After less than a half day of deliberations, jurors decided the case in TSI’s favor on all claims, awarding no damages to the plaintiff.
Peck has more than 30 years of experience litigating cases involving toxic torts, products liability and catastrophic injuries nationwide.
Hooper focuses on products liability, premises liability, and lawsuits involving catastrophic automobile and trucking accidents.
Dunn helps clients navigate all stages of civil litigation, including breach-of-contract, fraud, personal injury, medical malpractice, real estate disputes, insurance bad faith and other commercial tort claims.
