Products liability – Virginia law – Blender

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Where a plaintiff was injured in Virginia while using a blender manufactured by the defendant, summary judgment should be awarded to the defendant under Virginia law because the purported defect was open and obvious.

“This is a product-liability action. Plaintiff Jairo Renato Castro Rivera has sued Defendant SharkNinja Operating, LLC (‘SharkNinja’), alleging that he suffered serious injuries when the blade assembly of a SharkNinja blender detached from the blender’s blade base during use. …

“Here, the parties appear to agree that the law of Virginia — the state where Plaintiff’s injury occurred — governs these claims. … Accordingly, the Court will apply Virginia law. …

“… Because the Court concludes that the purported defect was open and obvious, it need not reach Defendant’s other asserted grounds for summary judgment. …

“… Plaintiff had used a similar blender with detachable blades almost every day for 14 months prior to his injury, and he had also been expressly warned by his mother of the risk of the blade falling out and causing injury or damage.

“In other words, the undisputed evidence establishes that Plaintiff in fact was — or at the very least should have been — aware of the risk of injury from the loose blades when pouring with the lid removed. Accordingly, the open and obvious nature of the hazard mandates summary judgment as to the remaining claims. …”

Castro Rivera v. SharkNinja Operating LLC (Lawyers Weekly No. 02-599-25) (7 pages) (Murphy, J.) (Civil Action No. 24-11119-BEM) (Oct. 31, 2025).

Click here to read the full text of the opinion.