Daly v. General Motor Corp.

Facts

Kirk Daly was killed when he was thrown from his vehicle. He had been driving 50-70 miles per hour when his car struck a metal divider, spun, and the driver’s side door was thrown open. His widow and three minor children (plaintiffs) sued General Motors, Boulevard Buick, Underwriter’s Auto Leasing, and Alco Leasing Company, the manufacturers and distributors of the car (defendants), for strict products liability. The plaintiffs alleged that the design of the door lock was defective and more prone to opening during a collision, and that Daly would not have died had the door not opened upon impact. At trial, the defendants introduced evidence of comparative negligence on the part of Daly. They asserted that the force of the impact was enough to open the door no matter the design of the door, that the car was equipped with a seatbelt and door lock which would have prevented Daly from being ejected from the car but which he did not use, that the car’s manual included warnings that the seatbelt and door lock should be used, and that Daly was intoxicated at the time of the collision.