NBA settles product liability lawsuit

Sacramento Kings basketball player Francisco Garcia was working out with 90-pound weights in each hand while balancing on an exercise ball when the ball exploded. The guard-forward fell forcibly to the ground in the 2009 incident and suffered severe injuries, including a broken right forearm. The team and the player sued the maker of the Gymnic fit ball, which was warranted to hold 600 pounds and was promoted as “burst resistant.” The team sought reimbursement of $4 million in salary, which it had to pay Garcia during the four months he was injured and unable to play. Garcia sought compensation for physical and mental pain and suffering along with a loss of future earning capacity, noting that he reinjured the arm early this year and was forced to miss two games. Recently the parties reached a confidential settlement in the product liability lawsuit, according to a report in The Sacramento Bee. It quoted an attorney in the case as saying the amount paid by the manufacturer, Ledraplastic S.p.a., was “extremely favorable” to the team and Garcia. For more about product liability lawsuits.