Liable for wood chips in the playground?
Here's a question for anyone with a legal background out there. You may have heard there was a playground with wood chips instead of sand which "spontaniously" burst into flames. Nobody was hurt, but the question is if somebody had been hurt, could the manufacturer of the wood chips be liable or would that be considered an "Act of God" or something else preventing civil liability?
Answers:
If you were to go to court you could argue either side and if you were a good lawyer you would probably win.
Depends on the state but many factors would have to be considered. Obviously, if a bolt of lightning struck and the chips caught fire; well, Act of God for sure.
But, ultimately, in the U.S. suing someone or getting sued is a national past time so you can engage in it for whatever reason.
Of course, whether you would prevail in court or not is anyone's guess.
That would depend on how the chips were treated and whether anything they were treated with was combustible. If so, I think there would be a good case against the mfg.
If they burst into flame during normal use the manufacturer would be liable almost everywhere under strict liability or negligence theories. And I only say "almost everywhere" because there could be a weird jurisdiction where that's not true, but I'm inclined to say "everywhere in the US".
yea, lets sue God, he made the tree that the wood chips came from!!
I would think that the manufacturer of something that is used almost exclusively on children's playgrounds would automatically advertise their product as safe and fireproof. If that's the case and the chips caught fire anyway, then obviously the manufacturer would be liable on several different levels.
If somehow, they advertised and sold a special gasoline-soaked cedar chip for use in playgrounds, it might be different.
I don't think it could ever be an act of God for something that's a defect in design or intended use.
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