[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5500 Introduced in House (IH)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5500

 To prevent undue disruption of interstate commerce by limiting civil 
   actions brought against persons whose only role with regard to a 
product in the stream of commerce is as a lawful seller of the product.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 25, 2006

Mr. Keller (for himself, Mr. Boren, Mrs. Musgrave, Mr. Hensarling, Mr. 
 Herger, Mr. Kuhl of New York, Mrs. Johnson of Connecticut, Mr. McCaul 
of Texas, Mr. Ney, and Mr. Davis of Tennessee) introduced the following 
  bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in 
 addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To prevent undue disruption of interstate commerce by limiting civil 
   actions brought against persons whose only role with regard to a 
product in the stream of commerce is as a lawful seller of the product.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Innocent Sellers Fairness Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) it is unfair for a seller to be held responsible under 
        the doctrine of product liability for damages that the seller 
        did not cause;
            (2) as a result of product liability, sellers are often 
        brought into litigation despite the fact that their conduct had 
        nothing to do with the accident or transaction giving rise to 
        the lawsuit, and may therefore face increased and unjust costs 
        due to the possibility or result of unfair and disproportionate 
        damage awards;
            (3) due to high liability costs and unwarranted litigation 
        costs, sellers face higher costs in purchasing insurance 
        through interstate insurance markets to cover their activities;
            (4) liability reform for sellers will promote the free flow 
        of goods and services, lessen burdens on interstate commerce, 
        and decrease litigiousness; and
            (5) legislation to address these concerns is an appropriate 
        exercise of the powers of Congress under clauses 3, 9, and 18 
        of section 8 of article I of the Constitution of the United 
        States, and the 14th amendment to the Constitution of the 
        United States.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY OF PRODUCT SELLERS.

    (a) In General.--No seller of any product shall be liable for 
personal injury, monetary loss, or damage to property arising out of an 
accident or transaction involving such product, unless the claimant 
proves one or more of the following non-sale activities by the seller:
            (1) The seller was the manufacturer of the product.
            (2) The seller participated in the design of the product.
            (3) The seller participated in the installation of the 
        product.
            (4) The seller altered, modified, or expressly warranted 
        the product in a manner not authorized by the manufacturer.
    (b) Liability for Non-Sale Activities.--If the claimant proves one 
or more of the non-sale activities described in subsection (a) and such 
non-sale activity was negligent, the seller's liability shall be 
limited to the personal injury, monetary loss, or damage to property 
directly caused by such non-sale activity.
    (c) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Manufacturer.--The term ``manufacturer'' means a person 
        who is lawfully engaged in the business of manufacturing a 
        product in interstate or foreign commerce during such person's 
        regular course of trade or business.
            (2) Person.--The term ``person'' means any individual, 
        corporation, company, association, firm, partnership, society, 
        joint stock company, or any other entity, including any 
        governmental entity.
            (3) Seller.--The term ``seller'' means a person who is 
        lawfully engaged in the business of marketing, distributing, 
        advertising, or selling a product in interstate or foreign 
        commerce during such person's regular course of trade or 
        business.
    (d) Effective Date.--This Act shall apply to any civil action 
involving a product that was sold to the claimant on or after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
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