Gerald Lake v. Tenneco, Inc.

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
Gerald Lake v. Tenneco, Inc., 319 F. App'x 769 (11th Cir. 2009)

Gerald Lake v. Tenneco, Inc.

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

The family of Jenna Lake sued Tenneco, Inc. after Lake and her boyfriend, Jason Epps, died from inhaling carbon monoxide while in Epps’s minivan. According to the family, Tenneco, which manufactured the muffler that produced the deadly carbon monoxide, failed to warn Epps of the danger of carbon monoxide poisoning from auto exhaust or to instruct him on how to install the muffler properly. The family says, because of those failures, Epps incorrectly installed the muffler on his minivan, which led to his and Lake’s death.

After discovery, Tenneco moved for summary judgment. Tenneco claimed that it had no duty to warn Epps because the muffler was not dangerous, and any danger of carbon monoxide poisoning was obvious. The district court agreed, stating that it “is common knowledge that if a car’s exhaust pipe is positioned in a manner that allows carbon monoxide to enter into a car that has all of its windows closed, ... there is a risk that the passengers will die from carbon monoxide poisoning.” This appeal followed.

We disagree with the district court. The muffler included no installation instructions or warning about the danger of carbon monoxide poisoning if it was improperly installed. Moreover, at all relevant times, the minivan was parked outside in a well-ventilated area. Under those facts, we cannot say, as a matter of law, that the danger of carbon monoxide poisoning was obvious to an objective, reasonable person. We, therefore, vacate the district court’s judgment and remand the case for further proceedings.

VACATED and REMANDED.

Reference

Full Case Name
Gerald LAKE, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Gerald Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Laurie Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Jessica Lake Brockman, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Sarah Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Matthew Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Benjamin Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Jonathan Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Michael Lake, as Survivors of Jenna Lake, Deceased, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. TENNECO, INC., a Delaware Corporation, Defendant-Appellee
Status
Unpublished