Amazon.com is not liable for the injuries suffered by a Louisiana State University graduate student after a laptop battery she purchased using the online marketplace ignited in 2016 and set her bedding on fire, an appeals court ruled.
As a result of the defective lithium ion battery sold by Talented & Gifted (T&G), Cassandra Skaggs was treated for burns to her hands, legs and thighs during a 10-day hospital stay, according to the complaint filed with the First Circuit Court of Appeal.
The court’s Dec. 15 opinion, written by Judge Page McClendon, affirmed the district court’s decision that granted summary judgment filed by Amazon and other defendants. The other defendants listed in the lawsuit included Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Entergy Corp.
Attorney Stephen J. Herman
| Herman, Herman & Katz LLC
Though T&G sold the replacement battery to Skaggs using the Amazon website, Skaggs failed to show adequate evidence that Amazon was the actual seller of the product or was required to vouch for its design or construction, McClendon said in the opinion.
“Upon our thorough review of the law, jurisprudence and evidence submitted in support of and in opposition to the motion for summary judgment, we find that Ms. Skaggs failed to present sufficient evidence to establish that Amazon was the seller of the battery at issue,” the opinion states.
The company met its burden of pointing out the lack of evidence identifying Amazon as the retailer or seller, the appeals court said.
“... We cannot say that Amazon is in the business of conveying title to or possession of a product to another person or entity in exchange for anything of value, as the battery was shipped directly to Ms. Skaggs from T&G and Amazon never had the title to or possession of the battery sold,” McClendon said.
Attorneys for Skaggs said the type of liability shield granted by the court is unfair to other American retailers.
“Insulating Amazon is bad for business,” attorney Stephen J. Herman, a partner with Herman, Herman & Katz LLC in New Orleans, told the Louisiana Record in an email. “It gives Chinese companies an advantage over American manufacturers. And, while good for Amazon, (it) places other U.S. retailers at a competitive disadvantage.”
Another attorney representing Skaggs, Jim Klick of the same law firm, said other retailers are seeking similar protections.
“Walmart has its own electronic marketplace and (is) supporting the same sort of immunity that Amazon wants,” Klick said.