Alene L. Curtis v. A. Neil Deatley and

In 1971 the DeAtleys, the defendants in this action, purchased a chandelier and installed it in the dining room of their home. The chandelier, weighing approximately twenty-six pounds, was held to the ceiling by a threaded pipe that screwed into a retaining bracket that was attached to the ceiling. The plaintiff, Mrs. Curtis, a sixty-year-old woman, worked as a live-in cook and housekeeper for the DeAtleys from January 1975 until August 1975. On August 5, 1975, she was allegedly injured while cleaning the chandelier. The plaintiff testified that on the day of the accident she sprayed a portion of the chandelier with a cleaning substance, turned to set the spray down and heard a popping or cracking noise. She stated that she instinctively turned towards the chandelier, grabbed it as it fell from the ceiling and sustained an injury. An examination of the chandelier after the accident showed that it fell because the threaded pipe had unscrewed from the retaining bracket. The plaintiff cleaned the chandelier approximately once a month and it was suggested by Mrs. DeAtley that when cleaning it she rotate it one-half turn in each direction. On January 5, 1977, Mrs. Curtis filed a complaint alleging negligence against the DeAtleys. On July 15, 1977, she filed an amended complaint alleging negligence and strict liability against Metallic Arts, the supplier of the chandelier, and A.W. Pistol, Inc., the New York distributor of the chandelier. The trial took place on May 15, 1979, and after the presentation of the plaintiff's case, the defendants moved for a directed verdict pursuant to I.R.C.P. 50(a).[Footnote 1] In granting the directed verdict the district court stated that it could find no evidence of a defect in design, and therefore, ruled that as a matter of law there was no substantial evidence to justify submitting the claim of strict liability to the jury. He also ruled that as a matter of law there was no substantial evidence to support the claim of negligence because there was no evidence of any negligence on the part of Metallic Arts, A.W. Pistol or the DeAtleys. After granting the directed verdicts in favor of all the defendants the district court then ordered that costs and attorney fees be granted to the defendants. This appeal followed.