Cases—Damages—Economic loss rule does not bar damages for parties not in privity

Speaking of the economic loss rule, Howard Bashman at the appellate litigation blog How Appealing reports on a new decision by the Florida Supreme Court holds that the rule does not bar damages for negligence by those who are not parties to the contract.  The decision is here.

Answering a question certified to it by the Eleventh Circuit, the court said, “We conclude that the ‘economic loss doctrine’ or ‘economic loss rule’ bars a negligence action to recover solely economic damages only in circumstances where the parties are either in contractual privity or the defendant is a manufacturer or distributor of a product, and no established exception to the application of the rule applies.”