In a ruling that could have wide-ranging implications, REI must take responsibility for an allegedly defective fork that caused a Novara bicycle to collapse in 2007 and left a woman with permanent injuries, a Washington appeals court ruled last week.
The ruling came only a few days after the plaintiff, Monika Johnson, was killed in an unrelated backcountry accident in Snoqualmie Pass in Washington.
Johnson sued REI when a carbon fiber fork on her Novara bike failed, throwing her face down onto a sidewalk, according to a report in the Seattle Times. The accident broke her jaw, cost her several teeth and caused her to suffer head injuries and cuts and abrasions, according to her lawsuit.
REI had argued that manufacturers of the Novara's fork, not REI, should be responsible for any defects.
Johnson's attorneys argued REI was responsible because it had branded the bike as its own.
The part was manufactured by Aprebic Industry, but sold under REI's private label brand name Novara, according to Courthouse News Service. The appellate court agreed with the trial court's ruling that REI has the liability of a manufacturer under the Washington Product Liability Act.
“Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) is not entitled to seek to allocate fault to the manufacturer of the defective product that REI branded as its own,” the appeal court’s Feb. 7 ruling reads.
REI has not yet determined whether to appeal the ruling to the state's Supreme Court. Johnson's attorney said they would pursue the lawsuit through her estate.
