Wang (Health Body World Supply, Inc. v.)

Citations

• 353 Conn. 296

Syllabus

The plaintiffs, H Co. and its insurer, brought an action for contribution against the defendant physician, W, pursuant to the comparative responsibil- ity provisions (§ 52-572o) of the Connecticut Product Liability Act (§ 52- 572m et seq.). The plaintiffs filed their contribution action in May, 2022, after they paid in full damages awarded pursuant to a judgment rendered in the underlying action brought by K, who had been injured when a heat lamp manufactured by H Co. made contact with her foot during an acupunc- ture session performed by W. In the underlying action, K originally sought to recover damages from W for his alleged medical malpractice. Thereafter, W filed a third-party complaint against H Co. sounding in product liability, and K then filed a complaint directly against H Co., also sounding in product liability. In response to W's and K's complaints, H Co. raised several special defenses, including that K and W each bore comparative responsibility for K's injuries and that, if H Co. were to be found liable for K's damages, it was entitled to contribution from W pursuant to § 52-572o. Before the case was submitted to the jury, W withdrew his third-party complaint against H Co. The jury subsequently returned a verdict for K, finding that H Co. was 80 percent responsible and W was 20 percent responsible for K's damages. In accordance with the verdict, judgment was rendered in the underlying action in January, 2019. Thereafter, the Appellate Court reversed that judg- ment in part, concluding that the medical malpractice claim against W should have been dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction, but affirmed the portion of the judgment relating to K's product liability claim. This court subsequently denied H Co.'s petition for certification to appeal in November, 2021. In their contribution action, the plaintiffs sought to recover 20 percent of the amount paid to K in satisfaction of the underlying judgment. The trial court granted the plaintiffs' motion for