Judge Says Defendant's Description of Sand Product Creates Fact Issue

LAUREL, Miss. - Questions as to whether a sand supplier designed or manufactured its silica-related product, such that the company may be held liable under certain product liability theories, should be determined by a jury, a state court judge in Mississippi has ruled. Tate v. Pulmosan Safety Equipment Co., et al., No. 2004-195-CV8 (Miss. Cir. Ct., Jones Cty.).

Judge Robert B. Helfrich said in a July 21 decision denying Clark Sand Co.'s motion for summary judgment that the defendant's own description of its product appears to place at issue whether sections of the Mississippi Product Liability Act dealing with …