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Cohade v Qual-Craft Industries — $2 million Verdict on Retrial after Appeal which Created
New Law in Connecticut.
In this product liability case, it was claimed that the roof brackets at issue were defective
because they were not designed to withstand some of the types of loads that would be placed on
them during ordinary use. It was claimed that the brackets failed during ordinary and foreseeable
use and led to the injuries suffered by two carpenters who relied upon them to secure the roof
scaffolding.
After a lengthy trial in Connecticut, a jury found the bracket defective and the cause of the
injuries, but in response to a special jury interrogatory also found negligence by the plaintiffs'
employer to be an intervening cause.
Prior to the jury being instructed, the plaintiffs had objected to that specific special
interrogatory that led the finding of intervening cause. We argued that since the two injured
plaintiffs could not have sued their employer under the worker's compensation laws, the
employer could not be a superceding cause. At best, the employer could be found jointly
negligent.
The Connecticut Supreme Court agreed, and reversed a longstanding line of cases which
allowed this type of defense. The Court affirmed the $2.3 million dollar verdict and made clear
that the manufacturer of the roof bracket could not seek contribution from the plaintiffs'
employer. It also found that the plaintiffs had no duty to anticipate that the roof brackets would
be defective and would collapse nor were they required to use a back up protection against a fall.
Partner Andrew Maloney and Of Counsel David Beekman handled the case for the firm.
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