Fla. Appellate Court Upholds Judgment for Stryker in Surgical Suction Device Case

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A Florida appellate court has upheld a judgment in favor of Stryker Corp. in a wrongful death case involving a surgical suction device, ruling that the trial court did not err in refusing to instruct the jury on the consumer expectations test, because the case involved a “complex product.”

In an Oct. 7 opinion, the Florida Court of Appeal, 4th District, reasoned that the suction device was never marketed to ordinary consumers, and ordinary consumers would not buy the device and would not have formed expectations regarding the device.

In November 2012, William Cavanaugh …