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Products Liability Keyed to Fischer, 6th Ed.
Boatland of Houston, Inc. v. Bailey
Citation:
609 S.W.2d 743 (1980)Facts
In May 1973, Samuel Bailey was operating a 16-foot bass boat when it struck a partially submerged tree stump, throwing him into the water. With its motor still running, the boat turned sharply and circled back, and Bailey was killed by the propeller. His widow and adult children sued the boat’s seller, Boatland of Houston, under a strict liability theory, alleging several design defects including the failure of the motor to automatically turn off when Bailey was thrown from the boat. The plaintiffs presented evidence that kill switches were feasible at the time of sale, including testimony that the concept had been used in racing boats for years and that a specific kill switch called “Quick Kill” had been invented around that time. Boatland presented rebuttal evidence that commercially available kill switches were not yet on the market when Bailey’s boat was sold in March 1973. The jury found that the boat was not defectively designed, and also found in favor of Boatland on several defensive issues including misuse, failure to follow warnings, and assumption of risk.
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