California Appellate Tracker

Modisette v. Apple, Inc.

January 29, 2019

Apple owes no duty of care to plaintiffs whose daughter was killed by a motorist who was driving while using FaceTime on his iPhone; proximate causation was also lacking.

Plaintiffs sued Apple for negligence and products liability arising from the severe injuries their daughter received in an auto accident caused by the other driver who was using the FaceTime function of his iPhone at the time of the accident. The court holds that Apple owed plaintiffs no duty of care because of the tenuous connection between plaintiffs’ injuries and Apple’s design of the iPhone 6 Plus without lockout technology and because of the burden to Apple and corresponding consequences to the community that would flow from imposing a duty of care. It also finds proximate causation lacking, thus barring plaintiffs’ products liability claims.

California Court of Appeal, Sixth District (Danner, J.); December 14, 2018; 30 Cal. App. 5th 136

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Modisette v. Apple, Inc.

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