The Irresistible Simplicity of Preventing Harm

Catherine M. Sharkey

doi:10.1515/jtl-2023-0027

Article

The Irresistible Simplicity of Preventing Harm

Catherine M. Sharkey

Published/Copyright: August 8, 2023

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From the journal Journal of Tort Law Volume 16 Issue 1

Abstract

In Loomis v. Amazon.com, the California Court of Appeal confronts the most pressing products liability issue of our time: the extent to which an online marketplace is liable for injuries caused by defective products sold on its platform. In a trailblazing concurrence destined to enter the torts canon, Justice John Wiley highlights Amazon’s ability to influence the safety of the products it makes available for sale, and uses the case to remind us that the “deep structure of modern tort law” is built to “minimize the social costs of accidents.” Similarly, Justice Wiley cuts a clear path through the thicket of the economic loss rule, institutional (or vicarious) liability and punitive damages cases by following the torts lodestar: the irresistible simplicity of preventing harm.

Keywords: harm; platforms; products

Corresponding author: Catherine M. Sharkey, Segal Family Professor of Regulatory Law and Policy, NYU School of Law, New York, USA, E-mail: catherine.sharkey@nyu.edu

Thanks to symposium participants for provocative questions and to Greg Keating for providing further written comments. Zachary Garrett (NYU 2023) provided excellent research assistance.

Received: 2023-07-03

Accepted: 2023-07-03

Published Online: 2023-08-08

Published in Print: 2023-03-28

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/jtl-2023-0027

Keywords for this article

harm; platforms; products