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1 | AN ACT concerning civil law.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by | |||||||||||||||||||
5 | changing Section 13-213 as follows:
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6 | (735 ILCS 5/13-213) (from Ch. 110, par. 13-213)
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7 | (Text of Section WITHOUT the changes made by P.A. 89-7, | |||||||||||||||||||
8 | which has been held
unconstitutional)
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9 | Sec. 13-213. Product liability.
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10 | (a) As used in this Section, the term:
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11 | (1) "Alteration, modification or change" or "altered, | |||||||||||||||||||
12 | modified, or
changed" means an alteration, modification or | |||||||||||||||||||
13 | change that was made in
the original makeup | |||||||||||||||||||
14 | characteristics, function or design of a product or
in the | |||||||||||||||||||
15 | original recommendations, instructions and warnings given | |||||||||||||||||||
16 | with
respect to a product including the failure properly | |||||||||||||||||||
17 | to maintain and care
for a product.
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18 | (2) "Product" means any tangible object or goods | |||||||||||||||||||
19 | distributed in
commerce, including any service provided in | |||||||||||||||||||
20 | connection with the product.
Where the term "product unit" | |||||||||||||||||||
21 | is used, it refers to a single item or
unit of a product.
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22 | (3) "Product liability action" means any action based | |||||||||||||||||||
23 | on the
doctrine of strict liability in tort brought |
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1 | against the seller of a
product on account of personal | ||||||
2 | injury, (including illness, disease,
disability and death) | ||||||
3 | or property, economic or other damage allegedly
caused by | ||||||
4 | or resulting from the manufacture, construction, | ||||||
5 | preparation,
assembly, installation, testing, makeup, | ||||||
6 | characteristics, functions,
design, formula, plan, | ||||||
7 | recommendation, specification, prescription,
advertising, | ||||||
8 | sale, marketing, packaging, labeling, repair, maintenance
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9 | or disposal of, or warning or instruction regarding any | ||||||
10 | product. This
definition excludes actions brought by State | ||||||
11 | or federal regulatory
agencies pursuant to statute.
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12 | (4) "Seller" means one who, in the course of a | ||||||
13 | business conducted
for the purpose, sells, distributes, | ||||||
14 | leases, assembles, installs,
produces, manufactures, | ||||||
15 | fabricates, prepares, constructs, packages,
labels, | ||||||
16 | markets, repairs, maintains, or otherwise is involved in | ||||||
17 | placing
a product in the stream of commerce.
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18 | (b) Subject to the provisions of subsections (c) and (d) | ||||||
19 | no product
liability action based on the doctrine of strict
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20 | liability in tort shall
be commenced except within the | ||||||
21 | applicable limitations period and, in any
event, within 12 | ||||||
22 | years from the date of first sale, lease or delivery of
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23 | possession by a seller or 10 years from the date of first sale, | ||||||
24 | lease or
delivery of possession to its initial user, consumer, | ||||||
25 | or other
non-seller, whichever period expires earlier, of any | ||||||
26 | product unit that
is claimed to have injured or damaged the |
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1 | plaintiff, unless the
defendant expressly has warranted or | ||||||
2 | promised the product for a longer
period and the action is | ||||||
3 | brought within that period.
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4 | (b-5) Subject to the provisions of subsections (c) and | ||||||
5 | (d), no product liability action based on the doctrine of | ||||||
6 | strict liability in tort shall be commenced except within the | ||||||
7 | applicable limitations period and within 15 years from the | ||||||
8 | date of first installation of any medical joint replacement | ||||||
9 | product that is claimed to have injured or damaged the | ||||||
10 | plaintiff, unless the defendant expressly has warranted or | ||||||
11 | promised the product for a longer period and the action is | ||||||
12 | brought within that period. | ||||||
13 | (c) No product liability action based on the doctrine of | ||||||
14 | strict
liability in tort to recover for injury or damage | ||||||
15 | claimed to have
resulted from an alteration, modification or | ||||||
16 | change of the product unit
subsequent to the date of first | ||||||
17 | sale, lease or delivery of possession of
the product unit to | ||||||
18 | its initial user, consumer or other non-seller shall
be | ||||||
19 | limited or barred by subsection (b) hereof if:
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20 | (1) the action is brought against a seller making, | ||||||
21 | authorizing, or
furnishing materials for the | ||||||
22 | accomplishment of such alteration,
modification or change | ||||||
23 | (or against a seller furnishing specifications or
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24 | instructions for the accomplishment of such alteration, | ||||||
25 | modification or
change when the injury is claimed to have | ||||||
26 | resulted from failure to
provide adequate specifications |
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1 | or instructions), and
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2 | (2) the action commenced within the applicable | ||||||
3 | limitation period
and, in any event, within 10 years from | ||||||
4 | the date such alteration,
modification or change was made, | ||||||
5 | unless defendant expressly has
warranted or promised the | ||||||
6 | product for a longer period and the action is
brought | ||||||
7 | within that period, and
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8 | (3) when the injury or damage is claimed to have | ||||||
9 | resulted from an
alteration, modification or change of a | ||||||
10 | product unit, there is proof
that such alteration, | ||||||
11 | modification or change had the effect of
introducing into | ||||||
12 | the use of the product unit, by reason of defective
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13 | materials or workmanship, a hazard not existing prior to | ||||||
14 | such
alteration, modification or change.
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15 | (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) and | ||||||
16 | paragraph (2)
of subsection (c) if the injury complained of | ||||||
17 | occurs within any of the
periods provided by subsection (b) | ||||||
18 | and paragraph (2) of subsection (c), the
plaintiff may bring | ||||||
19 | an action within 2 years , or within 4 years for a medical joint | ||||||
20 | replacement product, after the date on which the
claimant | ||||||
21 | knew, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have
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22 | known, of the existence of the personal injury, death or | ||||||
23 | property damage,
but in no event shall such action be brought | ||||||
24 | more than 8 years after the
date on which such personal injury, | ||||||
25 | death or property damage occurred. In
any such case, if the | ||||||
26 | person entitled to bring the action was, at the time
the |
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1 | personal injury, death or property damage occurred, under the | ||||||
2 | age of 18
years, or under a legal disability, then the period | ||||||
3 | of limitations does not
begin to run until the person attains | ||||||
4 | the age of 18 years, or the disability
is removed.
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5 | (e) Replacement of a component part of a product unit with | ||||||
6 | a
substitute part having the same formula or design as the | ||||||
7 | original part
shall not be deemed a sale, lease or delivery of | ||||||
8 | possession or an
alteration, modification or change for the | ||||||
9 | purpose of permitting
commencement of a product liability | ||||||
10 | action based on the
doctrine of
strict liability in tort to | ||||||
11 | recover for injury or damage claimed to have
resulted from the | ||||||
12 | formula or design of such product unit or of the
substitute | ||||||
13 | part when such action would otherwise be barred according to
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14 | the provisions of subsection (b) of this Section.
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15 | (f) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to create a | ||||||
16 | cause of
action or to affect the right of any person to seek | ||||||
17 | and obtain indemnity
or contribution.
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18 | (g) The provisions of this Section 13-213 of this Act | ||||||
19 | apply to any cause
of action accruing on or after January 1, | ||||||
20 | 1979, involving any product which was
in or entered the stream | ||||||
21 | of commerce prior to, on, or after January 1, 1979.
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22 | (Source: P.A. 85-907; 86-1329.)
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