In a question of first impression certified to it by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the Supreme Court of Connecticut recently delivered a partial win for defendants facing state products liability and unfair trade practices claims arising from the same conduct.
In Glover v. Bausch & Lomb, Inc.,1 the Connecticut high court held that the Connecticut Product Liability Act's ("CPLA") exclusivity provision barred a plaintiff's Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act ("CUTPA") claim for unscrupulous marketing of an allegedly defective product that caused personal injury.2
Glover involved allegations that the defendants' Trulign lens'an artificial lens surgically implanted in patients' eyes to treat cataracts'led to vision problems known as "Z syndrome" when one part of the lens moved toward the surface of the eye and other parts stayed in place or moved backward, creating a "Z" shape.3 The plaintiff alleged that she required several procedures to correct the damage to her vision and that fragments of the lenses could not be removed, permanently impairing both of her eyes.4 She alleged that the defendant manufacturers and marketers violated the CPLA by failing to warn about the dangers of the lens and sought leave to amend her complaint to allege a violation of the CUTPA premised on the "unscrupulous marketing of the Trulign Lens" because the defendants knew or...
