## Facts

- Robert E. Moody lived with his two minor daughters in an apartment owned and managed by Blanchard Place Apartments and Calhoun Property Management, Inc.
- The apartment included a landlord-furnished electric range approximately ten years old, manufactured by Roper Corporation and sold by Sears, Roebuck & Co.
- On May 30, 1996, while cooking in a normal manner, Moody received a severe electric shock when a metal spoon contacted the stove.
- The electrical current allegedly prevented immediate withdrawal; when the circuit opened, Moody fell backward and struck his head, neck, and back against the opposite kitchen wall.
- Moody sought damages for physical injury, lost wages, and related losses; his daughters sought bystander mental anguish damages for witnessing the event.

## Issues

1. Whether the evidence supported the jury’s finding that an unreasonably dangerous condition under the landlord’s custody (stove/electrical system) caused Moody’s shock, fall, and injuries.
2. Whether the awards for past lost wages and future loss of earning capacity were supported by the record and within the factfinder’s discretion given conflicting expert testimony.
3. Whether summary judgment dismissing the stove’s manufacturer and sellers was proper under the Louisiana Products Liability Act due to insufficient evidence of a product defect attributable to the stove as manufactured or sold.

## Decision

- The court of appeal affirmed the judgment finding Blanchard Place Apartments, Calhoun Property Management, and their insurer liable for Moody’s injuries and the daughters’ bystander claims.
- The court affirmed the jury’s damages, including awards for past lost wages and future earning capacity, finding no manifest error or abuse of discretion.
- The court affirmed summary judgment dismissing Sears, General Electric Company, and Roper Corporation because the record did not show a triable issue of an LPLA defect existing when the product left the manufacturer’s control.

## Legal Principles

- A landlord or premises custodian may be liable for injuries caused by an unreasonably dangerous condition of the premises or furnished appliances within the custodian’s control, when the condition causes foreseeable harm during ordinary use.
- On appeal, factual determinations on liability and causation are reviewed under the manifest error/clearly wrong standard, with substantial deference to credibility and weighing of evidence.
- Damage awards, including economic loss, receive great deference; a factfinder may accept or reject expert opinions in whole or in part and may select a reasonable figure within the evidentiary range.
- Under the Louisiana Products Liability Act, liability requires proof of an unreasonably dangerous defect attributable to the product that existed when it left the manufacturer’s control; absent such evidence, summary judgment for product sellers/manufacturers is appropriate.

## Conclusion

The court upheld a jury verdict holding the landlord, property manager, and insurer responsible for a tenant’s electrocution-related injuries from a landlord-provided stove/electrical condition, affirmed substantial wage-loss and related damages, and confirmed that product defendants were properly dismissed where the record did not support an LPLA defect claim.


Moody v. Blanchard Place Apartments, 793 So. 2d 281 (La. Ct. App. 2d Cir. 2001)