Estate of Shebel Ex Rel. Shebel v. Yaskawa Electric America, Inc.

ON PETITION TO TRANSFER

BOEHM, Justice.

The Products Liability Act bars product liability claims for injuries sustained more than ten years after the product is delivered to its “initial user or consumer.” See Ind. Code § 33-1-1.5-5 (1993). 1 We hold that a “user or consumer” under this statute includes a distributor who uses the product extensively for demonstration purposes and that the ten year statute begins with delivery for this use.

Factual and Procedural Background

On January 10, 1992, William Shebel, Jr. was struck in the chest and killed by a piece of a computer controlled lathe. The…