Shook Obtains Defense Verdict for Pipe Manufacturer

After a two-week trial, a jury in Middlesex County, New Jersey, returned a complete defense verdict for Anvil International, LLC in a product-liability suit brought by plaintiff Robert Shenton. 

Shenton was injured when he removed a grooved coupling and cap from a pressurized fire sprinkler system. Internal pressure caused the cap to rapidly separate from the system, striking his face and knocking him off of a ladder. Shenton lost his right eye in the incident and sustained other injuries in the fall. He alleged Anvil's grooved cap was defective in design and warnings because the cap would discharge from the system if a sprinkler fitter mistakenly removes the cap while under pressure. Proving to the jury that the Anvil cap was reasonably safe and not defective in design or warnings, Shook attorneys obtained a complete defense verdict for Anvil.