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Products Liability Keyed Owen, 8th Ed.
Cavanaugh v. Skil Corp.
Citation:
751 A.2d 564 (1999)Facts
On February 14, 1990, plaintiff Ronald Cavanaugh was working as a carpenter for Adonis Carpentry Contracting, framing a new house in Medford, Burlington County. While using a Skilsaw portable circular saw to cut a two-by-four, Cavanaugh released the trigger after completing the cut and heard the motor stop, but the blade continued to spin. About four to five seconds later, he set the saw down on the subfloor about eighteen inches to his right. The saw traveled across the floor and ran over his foot, resulting in the loss of one toe and severe damage to another. Cavanaugh claimed that the saw’s lower guard had failed to close, remaining in the open position, which allowed the still-spinning blade to contact his foot. The plaintiff’s expert, Louis Howarth, testified that the saw was defectively designed because it lacked an electronic blade brake that would have stopped the blade from spinning within seconds after the trigger was released. Howarth also testified that a “flag” indicator could have alerted the user when the guard was not in the closed position. Defendant’s expert, Peter Domeny, testified that the company had considered but rejected incorporating a blade brake due to safety concerns, including increased risk of electrocution and switch failure. Domeny also claimed that the saw showed evidence of having been intentionally wedged open, which Cavanaugh denied.
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