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Olshansky v. Rehrig International5/3/2005
Unfortunately for the plaintiffs, I. Shane Olshansky (Mr. Olshansky) and his wife, Myra Olshansky (Mrs. Olshansky) (collectively plaintiffs), the wheels on their lawsuit against the defendant, Rehrig International (Rehrig or defendant), came off when they failed to conduct discovery in a timely manner. The plaintiffs have appealed from a summary judgment granted in the Superior Court, in favor of the defendant, under the theories of strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty and loss of consortium.
This case came before the Supreme Court for oral argument on April 6, 2005, pursuant to an order directing the parties to appear and show cause why the issues raised in this appeal should not summarily be decided. After hearing the arguments raised by counsel and examining the memoranda filed by the parties, we are of the opinion that cause has not been shown, and proceed to decide the appeal at this time. For the reasons indicated herein, we affirm the judgment of the Superior Court.
I. Facts and Travel
The underlying facts pertaining to this case are limited. Although summary judgment was granted just one month before the case was scheduled for trial and more than two years after plaintiffs commenced the action, very little discovery was conducted, particularly by plaintiffs. The record contains only the following: one deposition of Mr. Olshansky taken by defendant; plaintiffs' responses to Rehrig's request for interrogatories; and the various pleadings that plaintiffs and defendant filed. Accordingly, the facts below are gleaned entirely from Mr. Olshansky's deposition testimony and the parties' briefs. As required in an appeal from summary judgment, we resolve any inconsistencies in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, in this case plaintiffs. Mills v. States Sales, Inc., 824 A.2d 461, 467 (R.I. 2003).
On November 22, 1998, Mr. Olshansky went to the Ann & Hope department store in Warwick, Rhode Island, to return a comforter for his mother. Upon arriving, Mr. Olshansky selected a shopping cart allegedly manufactured by defendant to carry the goods he was returning. Because the store would be closing shortly after his arrival, Mr. Olshansky quickly pushed the cart up and down the aisles, searching for the appropriate department. While pushing the cart around a corner, Mr. Olshansky suddenly felt himself being propelled forward; apparently, the basket portion of the cart had come apart from the wheels, causing him to fall to the floor. As a result of the accident, Mr. Olshansky claims he suffered injury to his knees, back, head and arm. In addition, he claims he was unable to continue working as he had been previously and eventually was treated for depression.
On November 21, 2001, plaintiffs filed a complaint against defendant and Ann & Hope, alleging strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty and loss of consortium. Rehrig filed a cross-claim against Ann & Hope seeking contribution or indemnification; Ann & Hope did not file any responses until three years later. In May 2004, the motion justice granted defendant's motions for summary judgment. The motion justice ruled that based on the evidence on the record, "it would be impossible for the plaintiff to establish a prima facie case." In his findings, the motion justice emphasized plaintiffs' failure to produce expert testimony to support any of their theories of recovery.
The plaintiffs argue on appeal that expert testimony was not required for any of their claims and that the circumstantial evidence on the record was enough to survive summary judgment. In the alternative, plaintiffs asserted that this case should be remanded to the Superior C
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