Citation Boles V. Sun Ergoline

Citation:

Boles v. Sun Ergoline, Inc.

Supreme Court of Colorado, 223 P.3d 724 (2010)

Boles v. Sun Ergoline, Inc.. Boles was the plaintiff; Sun Ergoline, Inc. was the defendant. The Supreme Court of Colorado decided this case in 2010. The citation states that this case can be found in Volume 223 of the Pacific Reporter, Third Series, on page 724.

Facts: Savannah Boles brought suit against Sun Ergoline Inc., a tanning bed manufacturer, asserting a strict products liability claim for personal injury. Boles fingers were partially amputated, by coming into contact with an exhaust fan, while using an upright tanning bed at Executive Tans.

Sun Ergoline Inc. moved for summary judgment, as Boles signed a release at Executive Tans prior to using its product containing the following Exculpatory agreement: “I have read the instructions for proper use of the tanning facilities and do so at my own risk and hearby release the owners, operators, franchiser, or manufacturers, from any damage or harm that I might incur due to use of the facilities.” The trial court agreed with Sun Ergoline and granted the motion based on Boles signing the release provided by Executive Tans.

The Supreme Court of Colorado grated Bole’s petition for a writ of certiorari, challenging the court of appeal’s determination that the exculpatory agreement barred her strict products liability claim.

Issue: Is there a viable cause for product liability?

Decision: Yes, the Exculpatory agreement violates public policy of the consumer to use this product without potential harm. The Supreme Court reversed the court of appeals judgment with directions to remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Reason: The reason it violates public policy is because the manufacture placed the defected product into the stream of commerce. The exhaust fan blade guard had significant room where fingers could easily pass through and the plaintiff incurred physical harm due to...