Opinion
C.A. No. N11C-04-026 JRJ
01-29-2014
Noah Manspeaker, by his parents and natural Guardians, Chris Manspeaker and Christine Kennedy, and individually; ReAnne Shaman, by her parents and natural guardians, Mark Shaman and Jullianne Shaman, and individually, Plaintiffs, v. Intel Corporation and ASM America, Inc., Defendants.
ORDER
Upon Defendant Intel's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings as to Shaman
Plaintiffs: GRANTED
AND NOW TO WIT, this 29th day of January, 2014, the Court having duly considered Defendant Intel's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings, the opposition and oral argument thereto, IT IS HEREBY DETERMINED THAT: 1. This is one of three "clean room" cases in which Defendants have moved for dismissal on the bases that, among other things, Arizona does not recognize preconception tort claims and, even if it did, Plaintiffs have failed to allege a theory of causation. 2. Plaintiff ReAnne Shaman ("ReAnne") was born March 9, 1998, with several disorders, including migrational disorder, cerebral palsy, right hemiparesis, and epilepsy. Plaintiffs allege that ReAnne's disorders are the result of Plaintiff Parents' exposures to reproductively toxic substances during their employment at Intel's premises. Like the parties in Rodriguez, Plaintiffs' first amended complaint ("FAC") expressly states that they "do not allege or assert that any Parent Plaintiff sustained any injury at all. In the event that Plaintiff Parent did sustain injury, that injury was not the cause of [ReAnne's] injury." 3. Plaintiffs filed their FAC on January 20, 2012, asserting claims of: (1) negligence; (2) premises liability; (3) strict liability; (4) abnormally dangerous and ultra-hazardous activity; (5) willful, wanton, and intentional misconduct; (6) breach of an assumed duty; and (7) loss of consortium. On May 10, 2013, Defendant Intel moved for judgment on the pleadings, arguing, inter alia: Plaintiffs' FAC fails to allege causation; Plaintiffs failed to establish a duty Defendants owed to ReAnne; and, applying Arizona law in a way to recognize a preconception tort would violate separation of powers. 4. For the reasons set forth in the Court's detailed January 28, 2014 Opinion in Rodriguez v. Intel Corp., Defendant Intel's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings is GRANTED.
See Smith v. Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., 10C-07-273 JRJ; Rodriguez v. Intel Corp., 11C-08-029 JRJ; Tumlinson v. Adv. Micro Devices, Inc., 2012 WL 1415777, at *1, n. 2 (Del. Super. Jan. 6, 2012) (Silverman, J) ("A clean room is a manufacturing area with particle counts less than or equal to 100 particles per cubic foot [], of a particle size greater than 0.5 microns.").
Smith, 10C-07-273 JRJ, Defts.' Mtn. to Dism. Op. Br., Trans. ID 52228954, May 10, 2013, at 1; Rodriguez, 11C-08-029 JRJ, Defts.' Mtn. to Dism. Op. Br., Trans. ID 52230051, May 10, 2013, at 1. Shaman Plaintiffs do not contest Arizona's applicability. Pltfs.' Supp. Ans. Br., Trans. ID 53067061.
First Amended Complaint ("FAC"), Trans. ID 42038762, ¶¶ 3, 44.
Id. ¶¶ 9, 11, 17, 44.
Id. ¶ 54.
Id. ¶¶ 88-133.
Intel's Mtn. for J. on the Pldgs. Op. Br. ("Mot."), Trans. ID 52232448, at 12-13.
Id. 13-23.
Id. 24-30.
11C-08-029 JRJ, Trans. ID 54909293.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Judge Jan R. Jurden
cc: Prothonotary