August 20, 2020

Bolger v. Amazon.com, LLC (2020) 53 Cal.App.5th 431

The plaintiff ordered a battery sold by a third-party on Amazon. The battery exploded after several months, causing plaintiff severe injury. Plaintiff sued Amazon, among others, for strict products liability. Amazon moved for summary judgment, arguing that because Amazon did not distribute, manufacture, or sell the battery, strict liability was inapplicable. The trial court granted the motion, and plaintiff appealed.

The Court of Appeal reversed. Because Amazon placed itself between the third-party seller and the plaintiff consumer in the chain of distribution of the defective product, Amazon is liable for the product. By accepting possession, storing, and listing the product, attracting plaintiff to its website, shipping the product to plaintiff, and controlling the conditions of sale by the third-party seller, Amazon was an “ ‘integral part of the overall producing and marketing enterprise that should bear the cost of injuries resulting from defective products.’ ”