Hi Ted:
I picked the reference from David Lazarus’ December 24th column from the LA
Times:
<https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-12-24/acts-of-god-consumer-contract>
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-12-24/acts-of-god-consumer-contract
He says, “… that “acts of God” is cited so frequently as an excuse for not
meeting corporate obligations.”
In considering the safety of a product, if a product met the standard but still
caused an injury, could or would a corporation invoke that the injury was an
“act of God” to absolve itself from liability as corporations appear to do for
other obligations?
We’re all biased here. We are “good guys.” We believe it behooves the
manufacturer to take all steps – none of which are “acts of God” -- to prevent
injury from a product.
Best wishes for the holiday season,
Rich
PS: Many would say that the eruption of the White Island volcano was an “act
of God.” While volcanic activity was monitored, volcanologists did not predict
the violent eruption. Either the volcanologists were not good enough, or the
eruption was an “act of God”?
From: Ted Eckert <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, December 30, 2019 8:11 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [PSES] [EXTERNAL] Re: [PSES] act of God versus safety
First, I am not licensed to practice law in any jurisdiction. Take what I say
as the view of an engineers with only limited experience in this area.
The term “Act of God” generally is limited to contract law and to insurance
law. It is also generally limited to natural events such as earthquakes,
tornados and such. It is unlikely that a court in the United States would
accept a claim of an “Act of God” in a product liability case. Rich gives a
brief statement from a 1944 Florida case, but that statement neither includes
context nor takes into account decades of case law and precedent that provide
the current interpretation of the phrase.
As engineers, it can be fun to play with ideas such as “Act of God”, but it
should be clear that this is just an attempt at humor and has little effect on
liability in product design.
The opinions expressed are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my
employer.
From: John Woodgate <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> >
Sent: Sunday, December 29, 2019 6:41 PM
To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: [PSES] act of God versus safety
Does that prove that at least one god exists?
Best wishes
With seasonal felicitations
John Woodgate OOO-Own Opinions Only
Rayleigh, Essex UK www.woodjohn.uk
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On 2019-12-30 02:09, Scott wrote:
If you do a thorough hazard analysis, an act of god is obvious!
Scott
Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 29, 2019, at 8:37 PM, Doug Powell <mailto:[email protected]>
<[email protected]> wrote:
Rich,
While many standards do indeed refer to foreseeable events, misuse, etc. I'm
not certain this would automatically confer Act of God status to an unforeseen
event. This hypothetical event may be a case of degrees and not of two
extremes, especially in the case of a formerly unforeseeable and now
preventable situation. Isn't this how many standards are developed over the
years?
I still remember shoe stores in the 1950s that offered real-time x-ray of how
well shoes fit the customer's feet. An unforeseeable hazard at the time and now
incredibly obvious. Would injury in the former time be an Act of God?
Best wishes, Doug
From: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
Sent: December 29, 2019 5:19 PM
To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
Reply-to: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
Subject: [PSES] act of God versus safety
The Florida state Supreme Court ruled in 1944 that an act of God is “an act or
occurrence so extraordinary and unprecedented that human foresight could not
foresee or guard against it.”
If a product that complies with a safety standard injures a person, is the
injury an act of God?
Best wishes for the holiday season,
Rich
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