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Keywords

plaintiffnegligenceliabilityappealtrialverdicttestimonywillproduct liabilitystrict liabilityjury instructions
tortplaintiffdamagesnegligenceliabilityappealstrict liability

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Thompson v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., 207 S.W.3d 76

Facts

Michael Thompson began smoking at age 14 and continued for 30 years, leading to a diagnosis of laryngeal cancer. He sued Brown & Williamson and Philip Morris for negligence and strict product liability, claiming the cigarettes were defectively designed and lacked adequate warnings. The trial included testimony from experts about the addictive nature of nicotine and the manufacturers' knowledge of the health risks associated with smoking.

Michael Thompson began smoking Marlboro cigarettes manufactured by PM USA in 1964 at the age of 14, continuing to smoke them until switching brands to GPC Light cigarettes manufactured by B & W in 1992. In February 1997, Michael Thompson was diagnosed with laryngeal (throat) cancer, which required four surgeries and radiation treatment.

Issue

The main legal issues included whether the cigarette manufacturers were liable for strict product liability and negligence, whether state law claims were preempted by federal law, and whether the jury instructions regarding comparative fault were appropriate.

The Court of Appeals, Victor C. Howard, J., held that: 1 smoker was not required to present evidence that reasonable alternative design existed in order to show that cigarette as designed was unreasonably dangerous; 2 state law claims for strict liability negligence based on defective design were not pre-empted by Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act; 3 whether cigarettes were unreasonably dangerous due to design defect presented question for jury; 4 issue whether knowledge of hazards of smoking obviated manufacturers' duty to warn smoker of dangers of smoking was question for jury; 5 issue whether smoker would have heeded adequate warning had one been provided to him at time he began smoking was question for jury; 6 as matter of first impression, amended complaint adding wife as party plaintiff and adding claim for loss of consortium related back to date of original complaint; 7 evidence warranted comparative fault instruction; 8 proposed instructions that jury could not consider failure to provide additional warnings beyond those mandated by Congress after July 1, 1969 were adequately covered by instructions given; and 9 admission of evidence that manufacturers should have provided additional warnings than that mandated by Congress was not abuse of discretion.

Rule

The court ruled that a plaintiff does not need to present evidence of a reasonable alternative design to prove a product is unreasonably dangerous under Missouri law. Additionally, state law claims for strict liability and negligence were not preempted by the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act.

Under Missouri's strict tort liability, a product's design is deemed defective when a preponderance of evidence shows that the design renders the product unreasonably dangerous.

Analysis

The court applied Missouri law, which does not require evidence of an alternative design to establish that a product is unreasonably dangerous. The jury was tasked with determining whether the cigarettes were defectively designed and whether the manufacturers had a duty to warn consumers about the dangers of smoking. The court found that the evidence presented was sufficient to support the jury's verdict.

To establish liability in a design defect case, the plaintiff bears the burden of proving that the product, as designed, is unreasonably dangerous and therefore ‘defective.’

Conclusion

The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's judgment, concluding that the jury's findings were supported by substantial evidence and that the trial court did not err in its rulings.

Affirmed.

Who won?

The plaintiffs, Michael and Christi Thompson, prevailed in the case due to the jury's findings of negligence and strict liability against the cigarette manufacturers.

The jury found in favor of Michael Thompson on the claims of negligence and strict liability product defect, and awarded damages in the amount of $1,593,508.

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