Product Liability -- 2020



2711 Hollywood Beach Condominium Ass'n v. NIBCO, Inc.   (Florida Court of Appeals)

Product liability for building components

The NAM filed an amicus brief in the Florida court of appeals to preserve Florida’s rule limiting tort liability for manufacturers of building products and materials. The developer of a residential condominium building in Florida improperly combined metal and PVC pipes in the building’s sprinkler system, causing the system to leak. The condo association, which purchased the building from the developer, then sued the developer and the pipe manufacturers under tort and contract theories of liability. The condo association did not claim that the pipes themselves were defective; rather, it asserted that the pipe manufacturers had a duty to warn about the alleged incompatibility of the pipes being installed together. A trial court ruled that Florida’s “economic loss rule” limits the condo association’s claims against the pipe manufacturers to contract and warranty claims and bars tort-based claims because the pipes did not injure people or other property. A broader rule would expose manufacturers to significantly more potential liability and could force them to raise prices or seek expensive liability insurance. On appeal, the NAM filed an amicus brief in support of the pipe manufacturers to preserve Florida’s economic loss rule and contain the potential for open-ended tort liability for the misuse of building products and materials. On September 16, 2020, the court affirmed the trial court's ruling, holding that the case "falls squarely within the parameters of the rule."


Related Documents:
NAM brief  (June 7, 2019)