The Cause of the Busted Shoe
Wow – Zion Williamson’s injury and sneaker blowout has been the talk of the media for the last couple of days. I’ve heard all kinds of reasons about the cause of the busted shoe, which in turn caused Zion to injure his other knee, which in turn caused him to leave the game, which in turn caused the Blue Devils to lose to the hated Tar Heels (a great example of the legal term “reasonably foreseeable”).
Did Michael Jordan sabotage the Nikes? Was the Nike salesman or delivery person a Carolina fan and “fixed” the shoe? Can Zion sue if his draft position drops and he loses millions because of his injury???
I can only answer one of those questions. “Shoegate” is a good illustration of an area of law I practice. While nobody likes a Heel (OK, I’m an OG Cameron Crazy), it would be tough to prove sabotage or defective delivery.
Zion has a potential Products Liability claim – his Nike was not safe for its intended use, meaning that it was negligently designed. It might have been negligently manufactured as well – the product departs from its intended design and is more dangerous than consumers expected because the manufacturer did not use reasonable care when producing the product. Distributers and retailers might also be liable if they know the product is defective or dangerous and sell it anyway.
We’ve handled a number of products liability claims around here. People get terribly hurt or maimed when using common everyday products they don’t even realize are dangerous. Vehicle products liability claims are known as “crashworthiness claims,” and the same principles apply. In ultra conservative Texas, Honda was just hit with a $38 million dollar verdict when the seatbelt in an Odyssey did not protect a young woman, leaving her a quadriplegic.
As for Zion, hopefully his injury is only minor and he recovers quickly. If it is more serious, and he can’t fly through the air throwing down thunderous dunks or swatting shots, and he loses millions of dollars, we have the expertise to take on Nike or anyone else involved in the process right here in little ole Henderson Kentucky. Maybe he will call me.
Tags: crashworthiness claims, evansville in, evansville indiana, evansville indiana injury law, henderson kentucky, henderson ky, henderson ky injury law, injury, injury law, injury lawyer, products liability, sports injury