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Miller v. Rinker Boat Co.9/15/2004
nection is not "open and obvious" and the mechanism of a friction-fit connector is not simple); Wortel, 331 Ill. App. 3d at 909, 770 N.E.2d at 1222.
Based on the principle of stare decisis, which, as the Supreme Court of Illinois stated in Wakulich v. Mraz, 203 Ill. 2d 223, 230, 785 N.E.2d 843, 848 (2003), quoting Zimmerman v. Village of Skokie, 183 Ill. 2d 30, 47, 697 N.E.2d 699, 708 (1998), requires a court to "'stand by precedents and not to disturb settled points,'" we follow the Scoby exception to the universal application of the danger-utility test and continue to hold that the danger-utility test does not apply given an open-and-obvious danger and where the product involved is simple.
In the instant case, as the movant, defendant had the burden to establish that its right to summary judgment was "free and clear from doubt." Therefore, this court must first determine whether a genuine issue of material fact existed regarding the simplicity of the product involved and the open-and-obvious nature of the danger. See Outboard Marine Corp., 154 Ill. 2d at 102, 607 N.E.2d at 1209.
(a) The Trial Court Erred in Granting Summary Judgment Because a Genuine Issue of Material Fact Exists Regarding Whether the Mechanism Was Simple
As stated above, the simplicity of an allegedly defective product is one element of an exception under which the "risk-utility" test would not apply. Even though courts (both Illinois courts and federal courts applying Illinois law) have determined the applicability of the "risk-utility" test based on the Scoby exception, few specific guidelines state how to determine whether a product/mechanism is simple. See Scaccianoce v. Hixon Manufacturing & Supply Co., 57 F.3d 582, 586-87 (7th Cir. 1995) ("We have little guidance either from our own opinion or from the Illinois courts as to the criteria for distinguishing 'simple' products from the not so simple"). Cases applying the Scoby exception indicate that the simplicity of the product is a question of law (see, e.g., Scaccianocoe, 57 F.3d at 586 (stating "this [simple-product] characterization is a matter of law to be determined by the court")), and courts make decisions based on their evaluations of the products before them. Since there is no developed test, we must examine courts' previous holdings and the rationale underlying the "risk-utility" test and the Scoby exception to correctly determine if the product-mechanism in the instant case is "simple."
First, let us compare the allegedly defective product in question, a motor boat, to the other products where courts have made the "simplicity" determination (see McDaniel v. Trail King Industries, Inc., 248 F. Supp. 2d 749, 756 (N.D. Ill. 2002) (stating the best way to determine whether a product is simple is by analogy)). As discussed above, this court in Scoby found an open-lid deep fryer to be a "simple" product (see Scoby, 211 Ill. App. 3d at 112, 569 N.E.2d at 1151 (stating "the mechanics involved [in a deep fryer] are simple")). Compared to a deep fryer, a motor boat clearly has more complex mechanisms. In fact, a motor boat is also a lot more complex than the two products that the Illinois Supreme Court deemed not to be "simple" and to which it applied the danger-utility test: the window screen in Lamkin, 138 Ill. 2d 510, 563 N.E.2d 449, and the "friction-fit" connector used to connect the IV tube to a catheter in Hansen v. Baxter Healthcare Corp., 198 Ill. 2d 420, 764 N.E.2d 35 (2002). As plaintiff's counsel correctly pointed out by reply brief, other products that courts have found not to be "simple" include a hydraulic lifting system (Fuller v. Rand Automated Compaction Systems, Inc., No. 92-C-1797 (N.D. Ill. March 7, 1995) (
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