In William Lansing v. Doe, 2019 Ore. App. LEXIS 1564, the Court of Appeals of Oregon considered whether the Economic Loss Doctrine (ELD) applied to the plaintiff’s claims based on purportedly faulty construction work in a home. In determining that damage to persons or property is not a purely economic loss in the context of the ELD, the court concluded that the plaintiff could proceed with a negligence claim against a contractor that performed work on the home. Continue reading
In State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company v. Norcold, Inc., 849 F.3d 328 (6th Cir. 2017), the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit considered whether Kentucky’s economic loss rule applies to consumer transactions. The economic loss rule prevents the buyer of a product from suing in tort to recover for economic losses when the product damages only itself. The Sixth Circuit predicted that Kentucky would not extend the economic loss rule to consumer transactions. The Norcold case reminds us that, while the economic loss rule can be a significant impediment to products liability subrogation claims, it is important to consider whether there are exceptions available to overcome this defense.